


i love the light in your eyes and the dark in your heart.

by crankgameplays



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: AKA, Adopted, Canon Typical Violence, LIKE K SAKD THERES A LOT, M/M, Natsu - Freeform, SO, Semi Public Sex, Singer Natsu, Smut, Torture, artist gray, coffee shop AU, for like one scene, get a boy who smiles when you choke him, give kudos if you agreed, guitar player natsu, its all some background stuff, its nt sex it’s a handjob, it’s just what they do for fun and it’s in the fic a lot, i’m not taggint sll the characters, jealous Natsu, kind of, listen, lots and lots of fluff, lucy and natsu are siblings, lyon and gray and ultear grew up as siblings, modern day AU, natsu wearing his scarf around his head like a bandana, slso all those ships tagged are mentioned like onc, theres some jerza too, there’s a cameo from almost every memeber of fairy tail, there’s a lot here, they love each other you cant change my mjnd, thrwres a lot of tropes and themes and stuff, tjeure not famous or anything, uh idk what else to tag, with a healthy dose of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-07-12 22:28:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 37,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16004591
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crankgameplays/pseuds/crankgameplays
Summary: Working at Fairy Tail is the least exciting thing in Gray’s life. Enter Natsu, a man who turns his life around just by walking through the door.





	i love the light in your eyes and the dark in your heart.

**Author's Note:**

> this fic has a LOT in it. i’ve been working on it for ages and whoop here it is! it was supposed to be a silly sweet fluffy little coffee shop au but... here we go! it’s the longest one shot i’ve ever written

Working at a cafe just a block away from his old high school is not the most exciting thing Gray has ever had to do. It’s usually a rush in the mornings, bleary eyed teenagers stumbling around and ordering too much caffeine with too little food, then scrambling out of the door so they can make it to school on time. After that, its just slow slow slow.

“But Im so bored,” Gray comments dutifully to his manager, Lucy, who’s perched on a stool behind the register and watching him wipe the same counter down for the fifth time.

“I’m sorry, Gray, but I cant just call up Mr. Makarov and be like ‘hi yes your best employee, Gray, fucked off and never came back because he was bored,’” She rolls her eyes, picking at her nails and pretending to ignore his constant whining.

“Everybody but you calls him Gramps,” Gray grumbles, finally abandoning his rag and making his way over to stand in front of Lucy. “It’s weird.”

“Shut your trap, Ice for Brains,” She huffs out, jumping off the chair and flicking him affectionately on the nose. He snaps his teeth at her fingers, and she giggles and walks away from him. “I have manager stuff to do!” She calls over her shoulder. “Be a good boy and watch the front,” She wiggles her fingers and then disappears, and Gray drops on to the stool with the loudest groan in the world. ‘Fairy Tail’ may not be the busiest or the most exciting place in Magnolia, but everyone was a regular, and the whole staff was like family. It may not be much, but it still made him happy.

**  
**

It’s another hour and a half before anyone even walks into the store. It’s still early, only a little before nine in the morning, and they usually have the tiniest rush of people working nine to five that come in and buy a cup of coffee, before it’s slow again until high school gets out. It’s what he’s expecting, when the bell above the door dings and he stands, shoving his phone in his pocket and producing the fakest smile that he can muster. What he isnt expecting is a boy standing in front of him, with the brightest pink hair he’s ever seen in his life. His eyes are almost black, staring straight at Gray, and he’s smiling like he’s won the lottery. He’s bouncing up and down on his feet, and his eyes move from Gray to look behind him before coming back to him. He’s wearing a dark black button up and a pair of light ripped jeans, a tattered backpack thrown over his shoulder. There a scarf wrapped around his neck, despite the fact that it’s summer, but it looks loved and well cared for. And he’s fucking hot, with a jawline that’s sharp enough to cut diamonds and cheekbones and oh, Gray is absolutely fucked.

“Hi,” The stranger finally greets, when it seems like all Gray is gonna do is stand there and stare.

“Oh, uh,” He shakes his head and smiles, his face turning hot with embarrassment. “Fuck, sorry. I’m a little out of it this morning. What can I get for you today?” He asks, fingers drumming anxiously against the register. He’s smooth, dammit, he got Juvia to fall in love with him without even meaning to just by smiling at her. He’s even gotten Gajeel to talk to him without utter disgust in his voice. He can fucking talk to this pink haired punk.

“Oh, uh. Just a black coffee. And is Lucy arou-“ He doesn’t even get to finish his sentence before there’s a squeal coming from the back, so loud and high pitched that Gray slaps his hands over his ears and cringes away from the sound. There’s the distinctive sound of coins falling to the ground, and then shoes slapping over the floor as Lucy comes running from the back.

“Natsu!” She screams. She doesn’t even stop at the counter, just jumps over it smoothly, and straight into the boys - Natsu, apparently - arms. Gray is kind of fucking amazed that she could pull that off. He’s just standing there, hands still covering his ears, gaping as Natsu spins his manager around in a circle with theirs arms wrapped around each other like this happened every day.

“Uh,” He speaks eloquently, finally dropping his hands. Natsu finally sets Lucy down on the ground, and Gray is amazed to see tears in her eyes when she steps back.

“Asshole!” She screams, slapping Natsu across the face. Yeah, okay, there’s his Lucy. “Four years without a visit?! A phone call once a year? What’s wrong with you?!” She huffs, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at him.

“Yeah okay, I deserved that. Psycho,” Natsu rubs at his reddened cheek, head still turned towards Gray from the force of the hit. He winks at him, pink hair falling into his eyes, and Gray feels his stomach flutter. He’s a man, dammit, not some boy getting butterflies over his first crush.

“What are you staring at?” He snarks out. Natsu full on laughs at that, finally looking back at Lucy.

“Feisty, huh?” He asks her, but Gray knows that hes talking about him.

“Yeah, and he’ll kick your ass for me too,” Lucy wipes furiously at her eyes, finally erasing all traces of tears.

“Yeah, why not?” Gray just shrugs, casually crossing his arms across his chest so that his biceps flex against his shirt. He’s been working out since he was fifteen, he was proud of his body. As evident from the stripping habit he picked up from his adoptive brother and sister, and adoptive mother. They were a weird family, okay?

“Oh yeah?” Natsu turns back to him, and slowly, deliberately, traces his eyes up Gray’s figure. Gray wills himself not to blush, and meets Natsu’s gaze full on, raising an eyebrow at him.

“Like what you see?” He questions, and he’s rewarded when Natsu’s face turns as pink as his hair.

“Sizing up the competition,” Natsu finally settles on, and drags his eyes back down Gray’s figure.

“Stop fucking flirting, you pervs!” Lucy growls at them and Gray winces. Yeah, he has no clue who Natsu is, and theres a possibility that he could be flirting with Lucy’s boyfriend.

“Go clean something in the back, Gray, I’m gonna stay here and chat with the customers,” Lucy finally orders, and she’s got her evil smile on. She looks a little like Erza, and Gray’s manly enough to admit that the women in his life are a little terrifying. So he does what any manly man, as Elf says, would do. He turns tail and fucking runs.

**  
**

Gray has no clue how long he spends in the back. He cleans up the small pile of dishes they have, finishes up counting Lucy’s register from the morning rush and putting the numbers into the computer. He’s not a manager, not technically, but he’s been trained as one. Gramps offered him the job, once upon a time, but he declined it. The rewards were nice but the responsibility and the long, changing hours weren’t something he wanted. He takes inventory, even if it’s too early in the week to really worry about it, but he still writes out what he thinks they’re going to be out of and will need to reorder by the time the week is over. He cleans down the small table in the break room, reorganizes the stuff in the refrigerator, and then puts it all back to where it used to be. He does the same thing in the freezer, even though it’s cold as hell, but the cold has never been much of an issue for him. Then he sits in the break room and doodles for a little bit, until Lucy finally returns. Her cheeks are a little shiny with tears, and her eyes are red and aggravated. She’s shaking out her hand, which is red and scratched.

“Shit, Luce, did you punch him or something?” Gray asks, standing up and walking over to her. He grabs her hand gently, checking it over for any bad injuries. She sniffs delicately and pulls her hand away.

“Of course I did. He’s an asshole,” She sits in the chair Gray was previously occupying, and flips through his sketch book. He lets her, because it’s Lucy, and she lets him read her half formed novels.

“You shouldn’t beat up your boyfriend,” He rolls his eyes and sits at the chair across from her. She snorts and shuts the book, shoving it across the table towards him.

“He’s not my boyfriend, that’s disgusting. He’s my brother,” She leans forward and rests her chin on the table, looking up at Gray.

“I didnt know you had a brother,” He’s a bit confused. Lucy comes from a well off family, and her father has never struck Gray as a man who was anything less than traditional. Natsu strikes him as someone who is very, very far from that.

“He’s not my real brother,” She finally answers. She looks towards the door of the break room, like Natsu is about to burst through it, and then scoots her chair closer and leans forward to whisper, “Hes had a really bad childhood. Both his parents and his older brother died when he was young. An old family friend of his father, Igneel, took him in. When Natsu was eleven, he just up and left without even telling him. My mom found him wandering around in a snow storm crying, and took him in. He’s been with us ever since. When he turned eighteen, he took the clothes on his back and left us to go look for Igneel. This is the first time I’ve seen him in over four years,” She rubs at her eyes again, to stop the flow of tears that Gray can see gathering in them. “And he just wanders back in like nothing ever happened! Didn’t even tell me if he found Igneel or not!” She leans back in her seat and crosses her arms over her chest. “Anyways. I know you think he’s hot,” She ignores his garbled protest, “But I’m your manager, and your best friend, and I say for now he’s off limits. He’s seriously messed up, Gray,” She gives him her pretty puppy dog eyes, the ones that even work on Erza. “Whatever he found on his little journey fucked him up. Like, really really badly. I can tell, he’s my big brother, he can’t keep anything from me. So just give him some space to find himself again, okay?” She pats his arm and then stands up and kisses him on the cheek. “Now get the hell out there in case someone else comes in. That’s about as much excitement that this place can handle for now,” She leaves him to stew in his thoughts for a little bit. He can’t help but wonder if Natsu is just as fucked up as he is.

**  
**

When he walks back out, Natsu is sitting at one of the barstools, nursing an almost empty cup of black coffee. He’s got a tattered notebook in front of him, and when Gray catches a peek, he sees various song lyrics and music notes. Natsu catches him looking and winks at him, which Gray returns with a scowl, until he sees the nasty red and blue mark forming across his cheek. He huffs out a laugh and walks over to the bucket of ice they keep for iced coffee.

“Lucy really did a number on you, didnt she?” He asks, scooping a few pieces of ice into a paper towel and then bringing it over towards Natsu. He takes it and presses it against the bruise, hissing quietly in pain as he does. When he pulls it away slightly, Gray can see blood shining starkly against the white, and winces sympathetically.

“She sure can pack a punch. I dont remember her ever being that strong as a little kid,” Natsu closes the notebook with his free hand and sets his pencil down, leaning back in the barstool and running a hand through his shaggy hair.

“Four years without seeing someone sure does leave them time to grow up,” He remarks cooly, grabbing an empty cup and a marker. He doesn’t look up, but he can feel Natsu glaring at him from the other side of the counter.

“Got something you wanna say to me, Snowflake?” Natsu growls out and Gray snorts. That’s the same nickname Lucy uses on him.

“You’re a bit hot headed, don’t you think, Ashes?” He asks, deliberately ignoring the question. Lucy is like a sister to him, and he’s always gonna have her back, even against her ridiculously attractive brother. He bites back a grin at the growl Natsu releases, still not looking at him. He finishes doodling the dragon on the cup, then writes Natsu’s name across it in fancy, looping letters. He fills the cup with black coffee and sets a lid on it, then places the cup in front of Natsu, angled so he can see the dragon. Whatever he was about to say dies as his mouth gapes like a fish, and Gray finally grins at him. He grabs the empty cup and the lid that Natsu had seemingly torn off and drops them both in the trash can under the counter.

“Woah,” Natsu grabs the cup and twists it this way and that, inspecting the drawing. It’s not even that good, just a quick outline of a tiny dragon with wings spreading across one side of the cup. Its quick and messy, and yet Natsu has this look of awe like its the most amazing thing he’s ever seen.

“You can draw?” Natsu finally asks, setting the cup on the counter. Gray gestures to himself with the sharpie still in his hand.

“Art major,” He informs Natsu, grabbing a rag and swiping away some of coffee he spilled.

“That’s so cool! And this is really good,” He drags his fingers across the drawing, before finally picking up his cup and taking a sip of the coffee. Gray rolls his eyes.

“Don’t cum in your pants, Flame brain, it’s just a shitty doodle,” Still, the praise repeats in Gray’s mind, making him feel all warm and fuzzy. Everyone at the coffee shop has seen his drawings in some capacity, and they’ve all complimented him on it. But Natsu says it with such conviction, like the two second doodle is the greatest thing he’s ever seen, that Gray can’t help but feel delighted.

“I can think of a few other ways you can make me cum,” Natsu outright flirts with him, and Gray chokes on a surprised laugh.

“You pervert!” He throws the marker at Natsu, who dodges it with a sharp laugh. “Disgusting!” Natsu just keeps laughing at him, until his eyes catch on the clock hanging on the wall. He squeaks, then scrambles to gather his notebook and pencil and shove it into his backpack. He drops his makeshift ice pack on to the counter when he stands.

“Gotta go!” He pulls out a worn looking black wallet and throws a handful of dollar bills at Gray, then takes off for the door. “Thanks for the dragon, Gray!” It takes Gray a couple of seconds to realize that he never even told Natsu his name.

**  
**

He loves the coffee shop, truly, he does. Makarov is the best boss he’s ever had, kind to a fault and overprotective and refers to every single employee as his child. Theres Laxus, Makarovs grandson, another manager. He got fired a little while ago, when he was going through some stuff and punched Gray in the face in the middle of a rush, but after some groveling, some therapy, and a lot of help from his boyfriend, Freed, he’s kind to everyone and helpful and still a touch sassy. Erzas not the best with people, but she bakes pastries to die for, and everyone’s mood is always lifted after her amazing brownies. Wendy and Romeo are only fifteen, so they only work three days a week, but everyone loves them like their own siblings, because they’re sweet and loyal as all hell. Cana has some major daddy issues going on, and some alcohol problems as well, but she always turns up sober and ready to work. She’s really good at reading tarot cards, and she’s funny as all hell. Every one has their owns problems, whether it be abandonment issues or nicotine addictions or mental illness, but everyone is always there for each other regardless. They’re a big, crazy, insane family, and Gray loves all of them with his whole heart. But if his boss puts him on an opening shift with Juvia one more damn time, he’s going to quit. That’s all there is to it. He’s just opening up the shop, his key turning the lock with a sharp click, when Juvia turns the corner and runs up to him, jumping on his back and wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Juvia!” He stumbles backwards, gagging as her arms tighten and choke him. “Get off me, fuck!” He twists his body, trying to throw her off, and she giggles and finally lets go.

“Hello, Gray, my darling,” She purrs and Gray rolls his eyes. He loves Juvia, even after the awkward ‘i-know-you’re-stalking-me-please-stop-it-scares-me’ talk that he had to have with her. She’s cooled her advances a little since then. She doesn’t stalk him and she doesn’t threaten the other female employees anymore, but she still clings to him like a koala and insist that he’s in love with her. It’s kind of annoying, yet he stills finds himself caring for her, just not in the way she wants.

“Did you miss me?” She asks when he finally gets the door open and steps inside the darkened shop. It’s only five thirty in the damn morning, he doesn’t want to deal with this.

“I’m gay, Juvia,” He tells her for the millionth time, but she just laughs prettily and flips all the lights on. She follows Gray into the lobby and they work on setting down the chairs and turning on the machines together. They work silently, but he can feel Juvia staring at him. She passes by him at every chance she can get, dragging her hand across his elbow or his shoulder or his back. It’s irritating but he bites his tongue. He doesn’t want to hurt her feelings and he knows that she’s not going to take no for an answer. They’re both good workers, though, fast and efficient. By the time the clock chimes six, the shop is neat and tidy and ready for business. Gray flicks open the lock and sits at the stool in front of the register, readying himself for an hour of boredom before the high school student rush starts in. He’s surprised when five minutes later the door opens, and even more surprised when a shock of pink hair walks through the door.

“Natsu?” He questions, standing up and leaning his arms against the counter. “Lucy isn’t here,” He tells him. It’s been two days since he last saw Natsu, because he was off yesterday and he couldn’t bring himself to get out of bed and come down to the coffee shop, not even to see if his newly found crush had shown up.

“Yeah, I know,” Natsu shrugs. He’s still wearing that damn scarf, but he’s wearing a gray tee shirt and a different pair of ripped jeans, ones that hug his legs deliciously and show off his thighs and Gray’s jeans are suddenly very, very tight. “I just wanted some coffee and someplace quiet. Okay with you, Snowflake?” He asks, shoving his hands deep in his pockets. Gray rolls his eyes and taps the register, bringing it to life.

“What can I get for you today, flame brain?” He asks in a mock polite voice, and Natsu rewards him with a short laugh.

“Gimme some damn coffee, asshole,” Natsu finally responds, and his tone is rude but he’s grinning like they’re best friends exchanging kind words.

“Normal or decaf? How many sugars? How many creamers? Want any flavoring?” Gray lists out the questions, even though he knows that Natsu’s going to take his coffee black. Natsu glares at him, and their staring contests lasts until Gray finally taps the little icon for a large cup of coffee and rings him up.

“A dollar fourteen, please,” He holds his hand out for the money, and Natsu slaps a five dollar bill in his hands. Natsu’s skin is shockingly warm, and Gray rips his hand away as if he’d been electrocuted.

“Jesus, Ice Princess, your hands are freezing,” Natsu huffs out. Gray doesn’t say anything, just punches in the amount he was given and deposits the money into the register. He holds out Natsu’s change, but the other boy just shakes his head and steals a seat at the counter.

“Keep it,” He says, pulling his backpack from off his back and setting it in his lap. Gray sighs and drops the money in the tip jar, before grabbing a large cup and another sharpie. He sticks his tongue out as he doodles, eyebrows furrowed together in concentration as he drags the marker across the cup in precise, sure lines. He doesn’t really notice that he’s drawing a phoenix until after he’s done with the feathers, and he snorts at himself but finishes off the doodle with a few groups of flames surrounding the bird. He caps the marker and grabs the fresh pot of coffee, pouring it into the cup and then pushing a lid on it. He drops the cup in front of Natsu, who startles, tearing his eyes away from the stretch of counter that Gray had just been leaning against.

“Watcha got for me this time, DaVinci?” He asks, greedily grabbing the cup and turning it in his hands as he inspects the fire bird. He looks absolutely giddy, smile wide and eyes bright, and Gray’s heart squeezes painfully in his chest. Goddammit, he’s so gone on this boy after only two days that it’s damn ridiculous. He wonders distantly if this is what Juvia feels for him, but he banishes that thought from his mind. Juvias obsessed with him, to the point of stalking and threatening, and that’s not how he feels. He doesn’t even know Natsu, he just knows that he wants to see that smile every day of his life. Natsu looks up from the drawing, their eyes meeting, and Gray feels his cheeks heating up. He forces himself to look away, walking backwards until his knees hit the stool and he sinks down on to it. He can hear Juvia in the background, talking to someone on the phone in the back, but he ignores her.

“So, whatcha think?” He finally asks, twisting his fingers together awkwardly.

“I think you’ve got a pretty good shot at becoming a real artist, one day,” Natsu responds with a devilish grin, and takes a sip of the coffee. Gray growls at him, his nerves disappearing under a heady rush of anger.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean? I am a real artist!” He yells in defense of himself, jumping up from the stool. Natsu rolls his eyes and swallows his coffee.

“I was giving you a compliment, Ice Prick, don’t get your panties in a twist!” He fires back, setting the cup down. Gray notices, absently, that he’s still tracing the drawing with his thumb.

“Thats such a backhanded compliment and you know it!” He argues hotly. He is a real artist, dammit, he’s going to one of the best schools in his state next year and he got in completely on scholarships alone. He’s a good fucking artist, he doesn’t need Natsu’s approval to know that. Natsu goes to respond, but Juvia’s voice cuts him off.

“Darling, what’s going on out there?” She calls in her melodic voice, and Gray can feel himself getting angrier already. He doesn’t want to deal with her bullshit on top of Natsu’s. She walks out to the lobby, coming to stand near Gray and put her hand on his shoulder. He rips away from her, and he can see the hurt in her eyes, but he can’t be bothered to care right now. He’s worked his ass off, morning noon and night, to make his future what it’s shaping up to be. He doesn’t need a little punk like Natsu come in and insult that.

“My beloved?” Juvias voice is soft and hesitant. “What’s gong on?” Gray finally snaps.

“I’m not your beloved!” He stalks past her, careful not to shove into her and avoid looking at Natsu at the same time, but he can feel both of their eyes on him. “I’m going on break,” He informs her.

“But we’ve only been here for an hour?” She replies, confused as all hell, and Gray hears the hurt in her voice. It softens his anger a bit, but he stills smashes his fingers against the computer and clocks out as fast as possible. He grabs his sketchbook and a pencil from off the break room table, then walks back out to the lobby. Juvia and Natsu are still there, and their eyes track him all the way to the front door. He flips them off as he leaves, feeling his anger swell under the heat of the newly risen sun. He fucking hates summer.

**  
**

He’s got ten minutes left on his break when he hears footsteps crossing the park, towards the bench he sits on. He doesn’t bother to look up, still angrily dragging the pencil down across the paper in hard lines, drawing out the scene of the park in front of him. He’s not angry, not anymore, but he’s full of pent up energy and that empty, itchy feeling that he gets when his anger drains out of him so fast it makes him dizzy. He still doesn’t look up, not even when a shadow falls across his face and blocks the sun from view.

“You made your girlfriend cry,” Natsu’s voice finally rings out. Gray sighs and slams his sketchbook shut, finally looking up.

“She’s not my girlfriend,” He replies tiredly, a statement he’s had to repeat to multiple people so many times that it just falls out before he can stop it. He motions next to him and Natsu takes the invitation, sitting next to him like it’s natural, like they spend every day hanging out with each other. Gray grips tightly to his notebook and lets the silence fall over them, scanning the abandoned park in front of them.

“Who’s got a short temper, now, Snowflake?” He finally asks, but his voice is all teasing and gentle and soft and Gray can’t find it in himself to be angry. He tosses the sketchbook to the side and leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

“I worked really hard to get to where I am right now,” Losing his family, losing his adopted mom, almost losing his sister. Hes never had a lot of money, has made it through life with stealing and begging and second jobs and third jobs and odd jobs, mowing peoples lawns and walking their dogs and babysitting their kids. He’s damn proud of how he ended up, of where his life is going after everything he’s put into it. “I’m not about to let some punk rock wannabe come by and insult everything I’ve managed to build up,” He looks over at Natsu. There’s regret in his eyes, but he’s still fucking smiling, this soft ass thing that’s so fond it hurts Gray.

“I was just joking, you princess,” He nudges his knee against Gray’s. He’s warm, even through the denim of his jeans. “From what I’ve seen, you’re a really good artist. You deserve whatever life you’ve worked for,” His tone is soft, proud, and Gray has to close his eyes against the feelings it drags up through his chest. He barely fucking knows this kid, and Lucy’s words flicker through his mind without him asking. ‘He’s seriously messed up, Gray. Whatever he found on his little journey really fucked him up.’ Whoever this kid is, he has a way of getting under his skin that would make even Lyon proud. He lays back against the picnic table, eyes closed against the blinding sunlight, and lets his constantly freezing skin warm up. He hears Natsu fall against the table next to him, can feel the warmth radiating off his body. The wind picks up and blows Natsu’s scent towards him, and he smells like the forest, like smoke, like a summer afternoon, and it makes Gray want, in a way he’s never wanted anyone before. This needs to end, now.

“Thanks, pinkie,” Then he sits up, grabs his sketchbook, and runs, the sound of Natsu’s startled laughter following him all the way back to the coffee shop.

**  
**

It’s another month before anything interesting happens at all. Natsu comes in, every single day, even if Lucy isn’t there. He orders a black coffee, praises Gray’s drawings, then sits at the counter and writes in his notebook for hours until he scrambles out of the doors, calling his thanks to Gray as he goes. They bicker and they fight and they talk, and they learn. They build a friendship around boundaries, about what they can and can’t do. Insulting parents, not good. Insulting siblings requires careful precision, a touchy subject that they tend not to talk about. Bringing up the past results in silence. Coming up with new, ridiculous nicknames is a necessity. Flirting? Definitely. Touching? Could end with a punch to the face or red cheeks. They’d gotten into a few physical fights before, but one of Gray’s coworkers usually step in and stop them before it gets too out of hand. They’re a bit of a wild card, him and Natsu. Gray tried to ask about the scarf one day, the one that Natsu wears no matter how hot the day is, and Natsu packed up and left without a word.

“Igneel made it for him,” Lucy explained after seeing his confused, heartbroken expression. “I tried to borrow it once and he didn’t talk to me for a whole week. He’ll be fine,” She assured him. Sure enough, Natsu was back the next day, smile firmly on face like nothing ever happened.

It’s just another, completely normal day, when everything goes completely insane. Summer is turning into fall, leaves brushing past the windows every so often, and it makes a great scene. Gray’s at the counter, finishing up on a drawing for one of his projects, when it happens. Natsu’s at his same place at the counter, the one he sits at every day, prattling on and on about this and that, when the door tings. Gray looks at Natsu first, because he always does, and the dawning look of horror on his face makes Gray stop short before he looks at the newcomer. He looks up and tries not to stare. It’s a guy with dark brown hair, spiked up and wild, and a scar crossed over his eye. He’s got a snake wrapped around his shoulders, and Gray’s about to tell him that, hello, reptiles aren’t allowed in cafes, but he doesn’t get the chance before there’s a fist flying and catching Natsu directly in the face.

“Fuck!” Natsu drops his pencil and clutches his nose, which is pouring blood on to the tabletop. Wendy and Bix come running out of the back to investigate the noise, and Bix almost instantly shoves Wendy behind him at the sight.

“Bix, take her in the back, ” Gray orders, standing to his full height. “She doesn’t need to see this.”

He’s got at least three inches on the guy, and he bets that he and Natsu could take him in a fight if that’s what it comes to, even with Natsu’s bloody nose. Bix doesn’t question his orders, just turns and pulls Wendy into the back.

“Sorry, pal, but unless you want your ass beat I suggest you get the fuck out,” Gray all but growls at the newcomer, but he’s completely ignored as him and Natsu stare each other down.

“Erik,” Natsu’s voice is thick through the blood, but it’s all casual, like he’s just seen an old friend after a while. “Long time no see, pal. Really wanna do this here?” He pulls his hand from his nose and stands up, arms crossed over his chest and showing off impressive muscles.

“You know better than to step foot on my territory, Salamander,” The guy’s voice is deep, and he’s trying too hard to sound threatening. Gray just watches the whole scene unfold with wide eyes.

“Not fucking here, Cobra,” Natsu’s eyes flicker to him as he hisses out the words, and Gray kind of feels like he’s being dragged into a terf war that he doesn’t want to be a part of.

“This is Midnights warning,” The guy finally settles on after a minute, then turns heel and walks out like nothing happened. Natsu’s shirt is stained with blood, and it’s in tracks on his face, down his lips and dripping off his chin in drops. Gray forces his feet to walk to the door and flip the sign to closed, turning the lock. He grabs Natsu’s hand without a word and brings him to the bathroom.

“Gonna tell me what the fuck just happened there?” He finally asks once his brain starts working again, once he’s processed the tense showdown he just witnessed. He grabs a wad of paper towels and wets them under the tap, then turns to Natsu and starts gently scrubbing the blood off his face. Natsu shakes his head slowly, careful not to dislodge Gray’s hand, and leans back against the bathroom sink.

“Trust me, you don’t need to know,” He says it in a tone that leaves no room for arguing. Gray gives him a look, but he doesn’t budge. “Gray, please. Just stay out of it,” And there’s nothing he can really do against that pleading and pained look, so he keeps his mouth shut and scrubs until the paper towel is covered in blood. Natsu’s nose is already bruising, but at least it’s not bleeding anymore, and it doesn’t look broken. He throws the paper towel away and he’s about to walk out but then warm hands are on his hips, and he forgets how to fucking breathe.

“Thanks, Snowflake,” Natsu whispers quietly, his lips brushing across Gray’s ear. By the time Gray can get his feet to fucking move and carry him out to the lobby, Natsu is already gone, a stack of bills left on the counter where he was once sitting. He always seems to have money, but Lucy has told him before that he doesn’t have a job and he doesn’t take money from their father. Gray’s never questioned it before but yeah, now he’s curious, because he always has the money to buy coffee and sweets and presents for Romeo and Wendy.

“Is he gonna be okay?” Wendy asks, her voice cutting into his thoughts as she slowly shuffles out of the back room. She smiles shyly up at him, and she looks so damn adorable with her blue hair up in twin pony tails, that Gray can’t help but smile down at her. Wendy treats him like a big brother, and always goes to him if she wants advice or if she needs help with something, or if she just wants someone to talk to. Shes an only child with parents that are never around, and she loves the attention that the entire coffee shop lavishes on her.

“Yeah, kiddo,” He drops his hand on her head and looks out the front door. “He’s gonna be fine,” He lies.

**  
**

Natsu doesn’t show up for another week after the incident. Gray feels like he’s slowly losing his mind, practically breaking his neck to look at the door every time the bell rings. His coworkers have been shooting him worried looks all week, and he’s spilt at least one cup of coffee every single day that Natsu has been gone. After what happened last week, he’s fucking worried. He can’t help it. He’s on his break in the back, slowly sipping at an iced coffee, his eyes trained on the black and white security feeds. When he sees the familiar white and black scarf he’s out of the break room so fast he spills his coffee all over the floor. He curses but doesn’t stop, skidding past Laxus in the back, who yells at him to slow the fuck down.

“Asshole!” He yells at Natsu as soon as he’s across the counter, slamming him into the wall. He’s really glad there’s no customers in the shop. Cana’s voice cuts off from what she was saying to Natsu, and then rings out again.

“Gray!” She yells at him from her place at the register. “He’s hurt, fuckhead! Get off him!” Now that he’s been called out on it, he can see that Natsu looks like death. He’s got deep bags under his eyes, like he hasn’t slept in days. There’s a cut across his cheekbone, a bruise on his jawline, and he’s trying desperately to grasp his shoulder and shove Gray off him at the same time.

“Ow,” He whimpers weakly, and Gray lets him go and steps back. Natsu curls an arm around his stomach, his other hand coming up to grasp at his shoulder, but he’s got a fire in his eyes as he glares up at Gray.

“Do that to me again and I’ll beat you into the ground, Ice Princess,” He growls, all intimidating through the pain, but Gray isn’t scared. He’s never scared of Natsu. They threaten each other like this all the time. The bell above the door rings, and Cana shoots them a warning glare before smiling at the elderly couple that walks in. Gray grabs Natsu’s wrist and drags him behind the counter, then into the break room, leaving the door slightly open. “Take your shift off,” He demands, walking out of the break room and over to the ice box. He grabs a handful of paper towels and fills a cup with ice, then locks the door when he walks back in, securing their privacy from the nosy ears of Cana and Laxus. Natsu is shirtless when he walks back in, his scarf and his shirt draped across the small table. Gray forces himself not to freeze in his tracks, but he gives himself a few seconds to look Natsu up and down. He has a scar across the side of his neck, but that’s not what jars him the most. He can see an angry red line going across the top of his shoulder, and a huge, ugly, green bruise in the center of his stomach, and what’s worse, two crossed and bleeding lines on his hip.

“Fuck, Natsu?! What happened to you?!” He drags his feet across the floor and deposits the paper towels and the ice on the table. He raises a hand and presses two fingers to the bruise in the center of Natsu’s stomach, and the other boy hisses in pain, slapping Gray’s hand away.

“You should see the other guy,” He finally answers and Gray can’t help but glare at him. It really isn’t the time for this. He grabs a paper towel and dumps some of the ice on to it, then holds it to the bruise. “Keep this there,” He says, grabbing Natsu’s hand and pressing it against the ice. He feels butterflies in his stomach and forces himself to ignore them because now just so wasnt the time to flirt with Natsu when he looked like he should be on deaths bed. He grabs another paper towel and wipes the blood away from the wound on his hip. He feels a bit faint, looking at Natsu covered in so much damage.

“God, what did you do?” He whispers, while he forces Natsu to spin around despite his protests. He thought the cut on Natsu’s hip was bad, but he is nowhere near prepared for this. There’s a wide slash going all the way down his shoulder blade and across the top of his shoulder, scabbed over but with specks of blood pooling at the edges of the wound.

“How many times were you fucking stabbed?!” He practically screams, scrambling for the paper towels and ice. Natsu just shrugs and then winces as it pulls at the wound.

“I had multiple knives thrown at me, Gray,” Gray doesn’t even have words for that. None. Especially not even about the way Natsu says it, cool and casual like this happened a lot and he was used to it. He just grabs one of the paper towels and wipes the blood away, ignores the shaking of his hands, and pours some more ice on to the shitty white paper towel. He holds it up to the wound and then takes that time to scan Natsu for more injuries. This close he can see more scars, little white lines crossing over random places on Natsu’s back, and this close to his face he can see one right across the flesh of his cheek, and it surprises him that he never noticed that before. He’s got a tattoo curling over his right shoulder, a large red dragon. It’s tail curls around Natsu’s arm and it’s head rests on his arm under his shoulder, the wings spread so that one rests on his back and the other rests on his collarbone. It looks fucking badass, in Gray’s opinion, and it reminds him of the dragon he drew for Natsu on the first day they met.

“What are you doing, Natsu?” He asks quietly. He feels like he’s about to collapse. First the incident last week, and now Natsu looks like he’s been ganged up on. Ganged. Gang. Oh. Fuck no. He drops the ice pack and steps back, and Natsu spins around to look at him.

“Gray?” He asks and he takes a step forward and Gray holds his out. “What’s wrong?”

“Natsu, I swear to god,” He breathes out harshly. It makes sense, dammit. The guy coming in last week, demanding Natsu stay off his territory. He called it a warning, and now Natsu shows up after a week of radio silence looking like he barely made it out of a fight with his life. He hopes he’s wrong, he really fucking does. In the beginning it was easy to shove away his feelings, because Natsu was an unknown, a secret that Gray didn’t even want to get into, but now it’s different. Now he knows Natsu. He knows that he likes his coffee black but he has a hell of a sweet tooth, and he begs Erza to make him brownies every time he sees her. He knows that he’s secretly a fucking nerd, and he’s played the original Pokémon video game a hundred times over. His favorite color is blue, surprisingly, and his favorite season is summer because he loves the heat. He’s a fucking pyro, he never goes anywhere without his lighter, and he’s got a hell of a nicotine addiction that he’s been trying to kick for years. He writes song lyrics, he’s on his second journal of the month, but he never lets anyone read them. He can play the guitar but he doesn’t think he’s any good, and Gray’s heard him sings and thinks he’s damn good. He spoils the hell out of Wendy, and he’s never come in without a present for her. He loves cats more than himself, and he’s been looking for the perfect one for the whole month that he’s been back in town. Gray knows him. He knows what makes him tick and what makes him happy and what he thinks is funny and what he thinks is boring. He dies over puns. Gray doesn’t know his past but he knows who Natsu is, he thinks he does. If this is true, if Natsu is the dangerous person he thinks he is, then all that will mean nothing. Then he wouldn’t know Natsu at all, then the past month would mean nothing. All the flirting, the bonding, the longing gazes and the subtle touches and the compliments will be rendered null in the face of this news.

“I’m giving you once chance to tell me the truth,” His voice is low, dangerous and angry and calm in a way that scares even himself. Calm before the storm. “And if you lie to me, I will know, and I will kick your ass so bad that whatever injuries you have now will pale in comparison to what I’m gonna give to you,” He waits for Natsu’s nod of consent, understanding dawning in his gaze. He leans back across the table and tightens his grip on the ice pressed against the bruise, and then nods at Gray again.

“Are you in a fucking gang?” Gray asks. He knows he’s right but he still wants it. He wants Natsu to laugh in his fucking face and to call him insane for even coming up with that theory but it’s not what happens. Natsu looks absolutely heartbroken but so resigned at the same time. He just sags against the table and closes his eyes and sighs, so long and drawn out that Gray’s nerves skyrocket.

“It’s not what you think,” He finally whispers, and Gray’s sharp intake of breath make his head shoot up. “I’m not! I mean. It’s so complicated, Gray, Im sorry,” He doesn’t offer any further explanation. It’s quiet for a few seconds and Gray feels like he’s going to break under the silence. He wants to be mad. He wants to slap Natsu, to beat him and belittle him and scream at him but he can’t. Natsu looks so sad and defeated, he can’t find it in himself to be angry, even though he knows without a doubt he should be. He doesn’t know Natsu at all, not if he was keeping this secret the whole time and Gray didn’t even have any idea.

“Oh Natsu,” He leans heavily back against the wall, scrubbing at his eyes and trying to ward off the headache he can feel pounding against his skull. “What have you gotten yourself into?” He hears the clink of the ice as it drops to the table, then the shuffle of clothes as Natsu pulls them back on. He doesn’t move though, doesn’t open his eyes, just lets Natsu do what he has to.

“I’m sorry, Gray,” He hears footsteps and feels breath across his face, then the soft press of warm, dry lips against his cheek. “You were never supposed to be involved,” There’s a hand dragging across his stomach and Gray stops breathing but still doesn’t fucking move, until he hears the lock on the door click and then the door open and close as Natsu leaves.

“Fuck!” He screams and turns, slamming his fist against a wall that doesn’t yield. This is his fucking life.

**  
**

“I’m sorry but you’re fucking a guy in a gang?” Ultear practically screams at him. Lyon looks less offended and more amused, his hand covering his mouth like he’s trying not to laugh.

“I have not had sex with Natsu!” Gray screams, whipping the towel towards Ultears thighs. His sister simply laughs and sidesteps the attack.

“I cant believe that out of everyone in Magnolia, you fell for a drug lord!” Lyon finally loses it, practically falling to the ground from where he stands at the stove. “Of course that’s your luck, big brother!”

Gray growls and slaps him upside the head. He considers stalking over to his room to sulk for the rest of the night. He expected some sort of fucking sympathy from his siblings but this is just the icing on top of today’s shitty cake. Ultear’s hand dropping on to his head stops him from leaving.

“Relax, little brother,” Her voice is soothing, and she reminds him so much of Ur that he practically collapses into her touch. “We’re just messing with you.”

“I thought I knew him so well,” Gray’s voice cracks and all it does is make him angry, the anger that he should have felt towards Natsu being directed to himself. “I really fucking liked him, Tea. And I dont know anything about him at all,” He wants to cry. The emotional toll from the day is finally weighing on him, and he wants to fall into his sisters arms and forget about the rest of world.

“Come on, baby bear,” Ultear soothes and lets Gray collapse into her, wrapping her arms tightly around him. “He said it was complicated, didn’t he?” At Gray’s miserable nod, she drops a kiss to the top of his head. “Then maybe it really is complicated. You haven’t told him your past yet, have you?” Gray whimpers at that, a phantom flash of pain flowing through his body, memories assaulting his mind and reminding him just what he went through, just what Ur sacrificed for him. All it does is make his mood worse. He hears Lyon cross over, and then the comforting warmth of his brother, the scent of winter so familiar that it keeps him from spiraling. Him and Lyon had always run cold in a way that Ultear didn’t, preferring to play in the snow and assault each other with snowballs, running around shirtless like the freezing temperatures didn’t matter to them at all.

“Then don’t expect him to tell you his. Everyone’s past is different and complex, and Fairy Tail attracts fucked up people like a moth to a flame. You know Gajeel spent some time in jail and had some bad habits, and yet you treat him as though he was as much your brother as Lyon,” His little brother snorts at that and Gray finally cracks a smile. “Don’t judge people on their experiences, judge them on what type of person their experiences create. Natsu seems like a good person to me, and I know you think the same,” He pushes out of his family’s suffocating hold and nods his assent.

“He’s a stupid fucking nerd, is what I think,” He says, but he’s grinning.

“Now that wasn’t so hard, was it?” Ultear grins fondly down at him, and then both her and Lyon press hard, smacking, wet kisses to both of his cheeks.

“Ew! You pigs, get off me! God, you slobber like dogs!” Gray laughs and shoves at both of them, ducking under their arms and smacking both of them upside the head. “Jerks! Don’t attack me in my time of weakness!”

“You? Weak?” Lyon chuckles and punches Gray hard in the arm. “Two words that don’t belong in the same sentence,” Lyon and Gray have never really got along. They fought with their fists more than they had actual talks, and there was that short time after Ur’s death when Lyon blamed everything on Gray and went straight to hating him. They’ve grown after that, and they will always be brothers. They love each other, no matter what anyone might think, but compliments are few and far between and still warm Gray straight to his core.

“Thanks, Lee,” Gray grins and punches his brother right back.

“I’ve told you not to call me that!” Lyon growls and tackles Gray to the ground. They trade mock blows, not really punching each other but rolling around on the kitchen floor while Ultear screams at them from  
above.

**  
**

The last thing he expects as he drags himself to the back door of the cafe at five thirty in the morning with Erza trekking along behind him is Natsu, leaning against the door and looking half asleep.

“Your boyfriend is here,” Erza comments and Gray huffs at her. It’s too early to deal with this.

“We’re not open,” He tells Natsu, who perks up instantly at the sound of his voice. He’s got a nervous smile on his face, but Gray has always been one stubborn bitch. He shoves Natsu aside easily, though he knows from experience that Natsu could easily hold his ground against a push like that. Gray unlocks the door and walks in, and hears two sets of footsteps follow him inside.

“Are you deaf?” He growls, spinning towards Natsu, who stares him down easily despite Gray being taller than him by a good few inches.

“Gray,” Erza’s hand lays on his shoulder and he shrugs it off. He doesn’t want anyone else’s opinions, dammit, he hasn’t had any time to process the information and he wants to do it on his own terms.

“Gray Fullbuster!” Erza bites out and Gray’s resolve crumbles. Natsu may not scare him but Erza sure as hell does. “Don’t be such a dick,” She smacks the back of his head and he grumbles.

“Fine, but I’m getting paid for this,” He stomps over to the computer and turns it on, then punches in when the screen lights up. He walks back over to Natsu and grabs his wrist, dragging him out the door. Natsu goes willingly, silent and carrying an air of tension that makes Gray uneasy. He drags Natsu around to the back of building and leans against the brick wall. He checks the time on his phone and then holds on to it tightly.

“You have five minutes,” He warns. “Go.”

“It’s not like I have a fucking speech prepared,” Natsu growls out, and Gray almost relaxes under the familiar tone of anger. Almost.

“Four minutes,” He shrugs and Natsu huffs, stomping his foot like an overgrown toddler.

“Dammit, you never make things easy, do you?” Gray simply smirks at him, and at the very least it drags a smile out of Natsu.

“Fine. You never really gave me a chance to explain yesterday so I guess I’ll lay it all out here and now,” He leans against the wall next to Gray, his right shoulder braced against the wall and his other arm wrapped around his stomach. It’s still dark outside due to the early hour but this close, Gray can see the scratch on his face has healed over into a scab and the bruises have turned an ugly, mottled green and yellow color that makes Natsu look pitiful. He knows that Natsu doesn’t pull punches, that he gets back up after being knocked down, and that he never ever loses a fight. He kind of does want to see what the other guy looks like, because he bets that it’s worse than Natsu.

“I assume Lucy told you about Igneel and my four year adventure to find him, mostly because she has a big mouth,” Gray rolls his eyes but can’t help but agree.

“So? Did you find him?” He asks when it’s clear Natsu isn’t going to say anything else. Natsu gestures around himself, an obvious ‘Im still here, aren’t I?’ gesture that makes Gray scoff at him.

“Anyways. I did find him. Kind of,” He looks away at this point, refusing to meet Gray’s eyes. “He was in a gang when I found him. They all called him the king of the dragons,” He scoffs at the nickname, a look of disgust crossing his face. “He was a drug lord basically. Always had to disappear to go deal with his ‘coworkers.’ He thinks I’m naive. I know that he was killing them, or torturing them, or demanding money for all the drugs he’s sold them,” He’s still refusing to meet Gray’s eyes, and all it does is make him more nervous. “I caught him, one day. Tailed him all the way to the middle of this run down, disgusting town that I dont even know the name of. When he found out that I knew what he was doing, he lost his mind. Practically begged for my forgiveness, and what choice did I have?” He shrugs at himself. “I didnt. So I forgave him and he stopped. Actually stopped. Got the hell out of his gang and never went anywhere without me. You can imagine how they reacted,” He takes a shuddering breath and seems to steel himself for what he’s about to say. “The guy who took over for him when he left came to our house in the middle of the night and shot him in front of me,” Gray inhales sharply, his stomach plummeting with dread when Natsu finally meets his eyes. “So I killed him where he stood,” He says it with no emotion in his voice, no sadness and no regret but no anger either.

“Natsu,” Gray chokes out his name, and all the anger that he felt floods out of him so quickly that he feels dizzy. He doesn’t even know what to say to that, but there’s no need to think of sentences because Natsu talks over him.

“Even if my dad was their leader at some point, someone else took over, and I killed him. That, technically, makes me the leader. No matter how many time I say no, they won’t fucking leave me alone,” Now there’s anger in his voice, turning his tone rough, and Gray’s never been afraid of Natsu before but he thinks that maybe he should be. “I try to stay out of it all but they still find ways to drag me into it. I cant escape,” He sounds so distraught that Gray’s heart breaks in two. He kicks off the wall and shoves his hands inside his pockets. “So now you know everything. Never talk to me again if that’s what you want, call the fucking cops on me if it’ll make you happy. I know what I’ve done. I know the sins that I have to atone for. I just thought that if there was anyone to trust with this information, it should be you,” And then he turns and walks away, and Gray can’t find it in himself to call out for him. His mind is reeling and he feels faint, sliding down the brick wall till his ass touches the cold ground. He should be disgusted. Terrified. Ready to call the damn cops because the guy he fell in love with is a murderer. But he thinks about his life, about what he’s been through and who he’s lost and he realizes that the same exact thing happened to him to him, that he watched his parents die in front him. If he wasn’t so young at the time, he would have killed the murderer right where they stood. He realizes he just feels sad for Natsu.

**  
**

He gives himself a week. A week to think it over, a week to make a decision that could change his whole life, a week to make sure that this was what he wanted, a week to make sure that he knows what the hell hes getting himself into. And then he acts.

me: whats natsus number  
loopy: y u wanna know  
me: cause i fucking asked  
loopy: i’m gonna fire u  
me: i’m your best employee  
me: gimme his number  
loopy: can’t believe you’ve been dating for a month and haven’t gotten his number  
loopy has shared Natsu Dragneel’s contact information with you.

Gray quickly saves the number to his phone and changes the name to ‘Ashes’ before typing out a text. Then he deletes it, rewrites it, deletes it, and writes it again.

me: it’s gray.  
me: i got your number from lucy.

His phone doesn’t ding for another hour and when it does, he scrambles for it so fast that he slides off his bed and lands on the floor with a loud thump.

ashes: didn’t think i’d ever hear from you again  
me: come on  
me: you know i’m more stubborn than that

He waits another fifteen minutes, tapping his fingers nervously against the floor until Lyon shouts at him to shut the hell up.

ashes: what do you want, snowflake?

He can’t help it. He smiles like a fucking fool.

me: to see you  
ashes: seriously?  
ashes: gonna be wearing a wire?  
me: you’re welcome to search me if you want

He feels like a goddamn schoolboy, flirting over text with cheesy innuendos and red cheeks.

ashes: when and where  
me: now, at the park  
me: u know the one  
ashes: i know the one  
me: see you there

He doesn’t give himself anymore time to debate over his actions, silencing his phone and scrambling to stand. He shoves it into his pocket and then practically storms out the door, calling a greeting and a goodbye to Ultear over his shoulder. The park is empty when he gets there, but he only waits for another few minutes before the sound of crunching leaves fills the air, and Natsu stands in front of him, at the same picnic table they talked at the second day they knew each other.

“Sup, ashes?” He greets coolly, and instantly berates himself in his head. Sup? Who the fuck says that anymore?! Natsu snorts and drops onto the seat, so that Gray, who’s sitting on the table, has to look down at him.

“Why’d you wanna meet me, Gray? I told you my fucked up life story,” He looks up at him, pink hair ruffling through the breeze and if Gray really pays attention, which he always does because it’s Natsu, he can see brown roots poking through the carefully dyed hair. “Aren’t you scared of me?” The words are sarcastic but Gray sees right through them.

“Please,” He snorts. “I could take you in a fight, any time,” Natsu stares at him like he’s insane, then grins like it’s the nicest thing Gray has ever said to him.

“In your wildest dreams,” Natsu finally replies, his eyes still trained on Gray.

“How’d you know that you show up in my dreams?” He says, all cheesy words and blushing cheeks, but Natsu turns pink and laughs at him, shoving gently at his legs.

“Cheeseball,” He grumbles affectionately.

“Idiot.”  
“Loser.”  
“Fire brain.”  
“Ice head.”  
“Ashes.”  
“Snowflake.”

Gray grins. Whatever Natsu went through doesn’t change the fact that he’s a damn good person, doesn’t change the face that Gray cares for him in a way that’s slightly terrifying, doesn’t change the fact that Gray trusts him with his life.

“So you really still wanna know me? Still wanna be whatever,” Natsu gestures between the two of them, “This is?” Gray grabs his hand easily, linking their fingers together. Natsu’s mouth drops, but Gray tries not to pay attention.

“Yeah,” He says easily. He’s known his answer since they day he met Natsu. “Still want.”

**  
**

They start hanging out more after that. Gray doesn’t really know how it happens, he just knows that Natsu shows up at his job and waits until his shift is over, then drags him out the door and spends the rest of the day with him. Whether it be following him home and enduring relentless teasing from his siblings or bringing him to the cat shelter to coo over all the animals, or demanding Gray draw him a picture or listen to him on guitar or just sitting in silence in the middle of their park, letting the leaves fall down around them and listening to the screaming laughter of teenagers and kids running around with reckless abandon. He’s kind of a wild card, either bursting with so much energy that Gray is scared he’s going to explode or sitting in silence that makes Gray feels like Natsu thinks he has the weight of the world on his shoulders. It’s not easy. He gets these moments, these moods where he stares out into the distance and doesn’t talk and doesn’t react and Gray’s scared he’s lost him to his past demons, but he always snaps out of it and returns with a smile and a flurry of words. He knows him, back and forth, at this point. Knows his past and his present and what he wants from the future and yet he still feels like there’s more to him that he wants to spend the rest of his life learning.

“Alright,” Natsu begins, spread across Gray’s bed like he belongs there. Netflix is on in the background, a replay of a show that Gray has seen a thousand times. “Favorite second grade memory?” He asks the weirdest, most random fucking questions. Gray laughs anyways.

“Fucking freak,” He pelts a crumpled up ball of paper towards Natsu, who catches it and tosses it into the air.

“Okay, lets see. One time, it was supposed to be naptime but I wasn’t tired. I kind of just ran around in the dark stripping off my clothes, and then I cried when the teacher tried to make me put them back on. The school called my mom and she was just kind of like, yeah he does that. He’ll be fine. And then she hung up on them,” He grins at the memory, tapping the end of his pencil against his sketchbook. Natsu chuckles.

“Where is your mom, anyways?” He asks, tossing the balled up paper into the wastebasket and then turning on to his side, propping himself up on his elbow and staring across the room at Gray, who’s sitting at his desk.

“She died,” Gray answers firmly, dragging his eraser in long strokes against the page, an awkward feeling of guilt and remorse and loss clawing in his chest.

“Oh,” Natsu says quietly. “What happened?” He asks. Gray shrugs and drops his pencil, slamming his sketchbook shut. He doesn’t feel like drawing anymore.

“Don’t wanna talk about it,” He finally answers, spinning in his chair to avoid looking at Natsu. He hears the bed creak as Natsu shifts, then plants his feet on the ground to stop himself from spinning when he starts to get dizzy.

“Understandable,” Natsu answers. He keeps shifting until his back is pressed against Gray’s headboard, sitting up and staring directly at the tv. Giving Gray time to recollect himself. Time that he doesn’t need, because his guilt is a constant, dull ache that he feels every day of his life. He’s used to it.

“Anyways,” He stands from his desk chair and jumps onto the bed, knocking Natsu in the stomach and landing half on top of him after he stops bouncing. “What’s your insane plan for today?” He asks, tilting his head to the side so he can see Natsu. He’s laying on his stomach, crossed over Natsu so their stomachs are touching and he’s laying half off the bed, his head and feet dangling off it.

“I was just gonna lay in bed all day,” Natsu tells him, grabbing the back of his shirt and dragging him up the bed so they sit next to each other.

“It’s my bed,” He rolls his eyes and knocks his shoulder harshly into Natsu, who knocks back into him.

“And you invited me over,” Natsu recalls, wrongly, and Gray scoffs.

“No, I didnt. You showed up at my door, told me you were outside, and then demanded that I let you in,” He has the texts to prove it. They bicker back and forth, shoving each other this way and that until Natsu falls off the bed and Gray laughs at him. It quickly turns into a shouting match, Gray shoving Natsu off every time that he tries to climb back on to the bed.

“Fags!” Lyon screams as he slams the door to Gray’s door open, and Gray chucks a pillow at him. It hits him directly in the face, and both Gray and Natsu laugh at him, their struggle forgotten as Natsu drops back down on to the bed next to Gray. Lyon throws the pillow back at Gray, but Natsu lunges and grabs it from the air before it can touch him.

“My hero,” He drawls sarcastically, and Natsu bats his eyelashes and drops the pillow on to the bed.

“Stop flirting, I came in here for a reason,” Lyon huffs, stalking into the room and dropping to the end of Gray’s bed.

“Spill then, little brother,” Gray orders, kicking at Lyon’s thighs. He takes the abuse with a roll of his eyes and a middle finger.

“I need you to go clubbing with me,” He says, and Gray knows exactly what that means because Lyon has done this to him before.

“You mean you asked Juvia to go clubbing with you and she refused until you told her I would be there?” He guesses correctly, and Lyon has the decency to look a bit sheepish.

“Come on, bro! She’s cute!” He whines and Gray really wishes he had something harder than a pillow to throw at him.

“If yanderes are your type,” He grumbles, crossing his arms over his chest. Natsu snickers.

“She’s not a yandere and you know it. Please, Gray. Do me this solid!” Lyon climbs up the bed till he’s right in Gray’s face, and Gray takes the opportunity to shove him off the bed. He takes satisfaction in the loud thump and Lyon’s groan of pain.

“Fine. But Natsu gets to come, and you totally owe me for this,” He demands, standing and stepping over Lyon. His brother whoops and struggles to stand, then presses a smacking kiss to Gray’s cheek and runs out of the room, slamming the door as he goes. Gray chuckles and wipes the spit from his cheek.

“Absolute fool,” He mumbles to himself, pulling his shirt over his head. He smirks at Natsu’s strangled gasp, and turns to look at him.

“See something you like?” He asks, recalling their conversation from the first day they met. Natsu throws a pillow at him.  
  
“Traitor!”

**  
**

He hates clubs. Absolutely despises them. They’re loud and packed, reeking of sweat and sex and alcohol and cigarette smoke and even weed sometimes. It makes Gray uncomfortable, to be pressed against so many bodies and covered in other peoples sweat while the lights overhead make his head pound. He’s grateful when he finally gets to their table, dropping down with a sigh. Natsu drops down next to him, and Lucy is on the end, having arrived after Natsu texted her and told her to get the hell out of the house. Juvia is across from him, with Lyon next to her and Lucy’s boyfriend, Loke, next to him.

“Clubs are the worst,” Gray complains, cringing away from the sticky table. Juvias eyes light up and she nods excitedly.

“Oh, I agree, Gray. We should leave,” She reaches across the table for him and Gray gives a pointed glare to her hands, which she sheepishly tugs back. An awkward silence falls over the group until Lucy breaks it.

“Letting your hair grow out, Natsu?” She asks, lifting her hand and tugging gently on the pink strands. Gray grins and reaches out, grabbing a handful and tugging Natsu’s head down to his shoulder. His hair is getting a bit overgrown, curling over his ears and sticking up in ridiculously long spikes that somehow work for him.

“You’re right, it is getting long,” He agrees, and he and Lucy laugh as they drag Natsu’s head back and forth by his hair.

“Alright, it’s not a toy!” Natsu slaps Lucy’s hand away, causing her to yelp and laugh some more, and then leans in to whispers into Gray’s ear, “But you can pull on it later tonight.” Gray just snorts, beyond used to Natsu’s flirting at this point, and tugs harshly on his hair one more time. Natsu yelps, and the entire table laughs. He rubs his fingers over the sore mark carefully, then slides his hand back to rest at the base of Natsu’s neck and play with the shorter hairs there. Natsu’s face turns red, but he leans back into Gray’s hand like a cat.

“Alright, as absolutely adorable as you two are,” Loke interrupts, grabbing a few shots off of a tray that a waitress dressed in skimpy clothes is carrying around. He hands them out, then knocks his back with nothing more than a wince. “It’s a bit claustrophobic here. Would you care to dance, Luce?” He asks, standing and holding his hand out for her. She rolls her eyes but takes it anyways, her eyes flicking to Natsu quickly and then back to Loke before she’s gone.

“Do you wanna dance, Juvia?” Lyon asks, and Gray cringes. This isn’t going to be pretty.

“No thank you, Lyon. I prefer to only dance with Gray,” She rejects smoothly, and he feels bad when he sees Lyon wilt.

“I’m going to smoke,” Natsu whispers in his ear, and Gray shivers slightly.

“Take me with you,” He responds.

“I’m going outside with Natsu. You guys have fun. Dance a little, Juvia,” He instructs with his most charming smile and Juvia nods with pink cheeks. Gray follows Natsu out of the booth, and they link hands so they don’t lose each other in the crowd. That’s what Gray tells himself, but they keep holding hands even when they’re outside. Gray sucks in a lungful of fresh air, only slightly tainted by cigarettes and alcohol. He tugs off his sweaty shirt and finally pulls his hand out of Natsu’s to fully get it off.

“You really hate clubs, don’t you?” Natsu chuckles at him, pulling the lighter away from his face once the cigarette is burning red. He takes a drag and blows the smoke away from Gray’s face.

“Despise them,” He answers, leaning against the cold wall of the club and draping his shirt around his neck. He closes his eyes but opens them when he feels Natsu staring at him.

“How many times are you gonna check me out until you admit that you’re checking me out?” He asks, meeting Natsu’s eyes when they snap up to his face.

“How many times are you gonna take your clothes off around me, stripper?” Natsu snaps back, but he drags his eyes down Gray’s naked chest again. Horndog.

“Don’t even act surprised. You’ve seen Ultear’s ass more times that I can count, and I know for a fact you’ve seen Lyon’s dick before,” Gray scoffs. His family has no sense of self preservation.

“His isn’t the one I want to see,” Natsu responds easily, dropping his eyes to Gray’s pants. He shoves Natsu harshly, who just laughs and takes another hit of his cigarette.

“I aint as easy as him, Ashes,” Gray flicks the cigarette dangling from Natsu’s mouth, and he squawks and reaches out to catch it before it falls to the ground, sticking it back into his mouth once he’s got a firm hold on it.

“Give your brother some credit, at least,” Natsu defends.

“Oh, please. Juvia tells him to jump and he tries to fly. Bet you ten bucks if we go back in there he’s still gonna be begging her to dance,” He jerks his thumb towards the entrance to the club.

“Bet he’ll have given up and gone on to another girl,” Natsu sticks his hand out, and Gray slaps it with his own.

“You’re on. Finish up your death stick and let’s go back inside,” He demands. Natsu blows the smoke straight into his face.

**  
**

Gray gawks at the scene that greets him when they reenter the club.

“Uh,” Natsu states eloquently. “I guess we both lost?” He turns to Gray for conformation, but all Gray can do is nod dumbly. There’s Juvia, the girl head over heels obsessed with him, full on grinding against his little brother. And grinding is a nice way to put it. It’s more like sex with clothes on. Lyon leans down to whisper something into Juvias ear, which causes her entire face to turn red, and she turns around to press a kiss to Lyon’s cheek. Gray finally manages to close his mouth, and then grins and turns to jump at Natsu, who wraps his arms around him with a laugh.

“I’m free!” He yells, leaning happily against Natsu’s chest. Natsu wraps his arms firmly around Gray’s waist, setting him back on the ground and keeping him from jumping up and down like a maniac. He sways them slowly to the beat, and Gray settles down eventually, shifting to get comfortable in his arms. He ducks his head down to rest on Natsu’s shoulder. They’re the only ones in the club who aren’t grinding against each other.

“Looks like you’re not needed here anymore,” Natsu tells him when the song ends, and Gray nods against his shoulder. “Let’s get the hell out of here then,” He demands, and Gray pulls back.

“Sure,” He looks over his shoulder and sees Lyon and Juvia wrapped up in each other’s arms. Better to just leave than to disturb them. He knows Lyon can take care of himself. Natsu drags him out of the club, their hands linked together, and over to the car. The drive home is silent, Gray’s forehead pressed against the cold glass of the window as Natsu drives them back to the apartment he shares with his siblings. It’s kind of amazing, what with his motion sickness and all, but he sucks it up for Gray. He tries not to feel too happy about that, but he mostly fails. They walk inside as quietly as they can, and Gray shoots off a text to Lyon letting him know that they’re home. He knows that Ultear is already asleep, so he tries to be as quiet as possible as he and Natsu make their way to his room.

“Spending the night?” Gray asks, dragging his shirt over his head and kicking his pants to the ground. He climbs into bed and looks at Natsu, who looks between him and back to the bed over and over.

“Oh my god, flame for brains. You’re not gonna insult my delicate sensibilities. Get the fuck in the bed,” He pulls the blankets back and climbs under them, then pats the spot next to him pointedly. Natsu flicks him off then strips himself of everything but his boxers and climbs into bed next to Gray, snuggling under the comforters. Gray flicks on the tv, then flops back against the pillows and shoves his hand under his head.

“I dont like the dark,” He whispers quietly at Natsu’s confused look.

“‘S okay. I dont either,” Natsu responds just as quietly, and casually drops his hand on to Gray’s head, running his warm fingers through his hair. He acts like he’s doing it for himself, like it’s just something he wants to do, but Gray knows better. It’s for him, of course it is, a show of solidarity. A reminder that he’s not alone, he’s not being judged. Natsu always puts others before himself. Gray may have given him shit about the hair petting earlier at the club, but he relaxes into it just as fast as Natsu did and presses his head up against Natsu’s hand, like a cat begging for love.

“I dont need a kitten if this is the way you’re going to act,” Natsu comments, catching on to his train of thought in a way that only he is capable of, and Gray can hear the grin in his voice.

“Shut up and keep petting me,” He orders and closes his eyes. He’s tired, after working all day and hanging out with Natsu and going to the club. Natsu is warm against him, the sound of the tv and the fingers running through his hair lulling him. He falls asleep in seconds.

**  
**

When he wakes up, he has a suffocating weight draped over his body. He feels sticky with sweat and a bit uncomfortable, but when he opens his eyes he sees a shock of pink hair laid across his chest, and the panic flooding his body instantly dies down. He lifts his head and his eyes catch on the cable box across the room. It reads five forty five, which makes him groan and drop his head back to the pillow.

“Wha’s wrong?” He hears Natsu mumble, and when he looks down there are big, sleepy brown eyes staring up at him. He smiles softly and reaches out to run his hand through Natsu’s hair.

“Nothing,” He tells him, scratching his fingers gently down Natsu’s scalp. He feels Natsu shiver against him. “Go back to sleep.”

“‘Kay,” Natsu drops his head back down to Gray’s chest and curls up closer to him, tangling their legs together and wrapping his arm around Gray’s stomach. “You sleep too,” He lifts his hand blindly and taps it around the bed until he finds Gray’s face, and then he pats it a few times. Gray snickers and grabs Natsu’s hands, lacing their fingers together loosely and kissing his knuckles. Half asleep Natsu is equal parts weird and adorable, like a drugged animal stumbling around and looking for warmth and safety. That’s what Natsu seems to be attracted to the most, warmth, so its a bit weird that he seeks out Gray amongst everyone else. They balance each other out, he supposes.

“I will, weirdo. Close your pretty eyes and sleep.”

“You think my eyes are pretty,” Natsu comments through a yawn. “That’s nice. I think your whole face is pretty,” Gray rolls his eyes, but his entire face is burning red. It’s way too early for Natsu to be acting like a complete cheeseball. He tugs gently on his pink hair, releasing Natsu’s hand. He shivers when Natsu’s arms wraps back around his waist, his fingers gently tracing up and down his stomach before making absent circles across his hipbones. It makes his heart short circuit, and he prays that Natsu isn’t listening hard enough to hear the way his heart slams against his chest. His prayers are answered when the fingers still and Natsu’s entire body relaxes against him, falling back into sleep the way one falls into a bed, and Gray breathes a sigh of relief. He doesn’t really want to get up. He’s warm and comfortable, clinging to the last bits of sleep, and Natsu on top of him makes for a very compelling reason to stay in bed. Still, he can smell coffee. And he wants coffee. As gently as he possibly can, he lifts Natsu’s arm and slides out of the bed. He stands and looks back, and watches as Natsu pats the bed a few times before grabbing a pillow and wrapping his arms around it like a koala. He snickers and pads out of the room, following the scent of coffee to the kitchen. Ultear is sitting at the counter, dressed in her uniform and scrolling through her phone.

“Gray?” She questions when he walks in, scrubbing at her eyes. “Thought you were off today,” She clicks her phone off and sets it on the counter, raising her cup to take a sip of coffee. Gray hums, opening the cabinet and grabbing his own cup. He fills it with coffee then adds a splash of creamer and a few spoonfuls of sugar. He sets it on the counter and drops down next to his sister.

“I am,” He grumbles. “My stupid brain woke me up anyways,” He curls his hand around his warm mug and blows the steam away from the cup. He takes a sip and swallows before the scalding liquid has the chance to burn his tongue.

“Did Natsu stay the night?” She asks, and she’s got this knowing little smirk on her face that makes Gray want to say no. He doesn’t get the chance before his bedroom door is opening and he hears feet shuffle their way over to the kitchen. His face turns red as his sisters eyes light up, locking on to something behind him, and he spins around to tell Natsu to go back to bed. As soon as the barstool stops spinning Natsu climbs into his lap, arms circling around his neck and head on his shoulder, sleep ruffled hair brushing across his cheek. Gray sighs and wraps his arms around him to keep him from falling, turning back around to look at Ultear. She’s trying not to laugh, and failing at it.

“He’s like an overgrown kitten,” She giggles, and Gray just resigns himself to his fate of this always being held over his head. It’s awkward, Natsu is way too big to curl into his lap like a little kid and the chair is way too small to fit both of them, but Gray makes it work with a little bit of rearranging. Natsu’s head is tucked firmly into his neck, his arms caught between their chests, and his legs dangling off the barstool. It’s probably not comfortable but Natsu leans against him all the same, sighing softly against his neck.

“Yeah, well,” He grunts and lifts his hand to run through Natsu’s hair gently. His roots are getting overgrown, streaks of brown thrown through too long and too faded pink hair. He’s gonna have to dye it again soon.

“You really like him, don’t you?” His sister asks. Gray looks up from staring down at Natsu and blinks at her, his face flushing red. He grins sheepishly.

“Yeah,” He whispers, sliding his hand from Natsu’s hair to wrap around his waist to support him, pulling his other hand away to curl around his coffee mug and take a sip of it. He knows Natsu is asleep, breathing evenly against his neck and twitching minutely. It’s not like he could even deny it, not with them curled around each other like extra limbs.

“So why don’t you do anything about it, baby bear?” She asks, standing and setting her empty mug into the kitchen sink with a soft clink.

“I don’t know,” Gray shrugs, careful not to jostle Natsu. “You know I’ve never really dated anyone before. Shelia from fourth grade doesn’t count, I only did it to piss off Lyon, and she only did it to make him jealous,” He points out at the look she gives him. “And we’re just,” He looks down at Natsu and brushes the hair back from his forehead. “We’re both messed up. Neither of us have had easy lives. I dont wanna mess him up anymore, and I dont want him to mess me up,” It’s as simple as that. He’s scared for himself, for Natsu. He’s scared because he doesn’t know how to be in love with someone, and he doesn’t want to ruin things with them. He’s scared because all he has to do is look down at Natsu, curled up in his arms and snoring against his neck, and he thinks, ‘Oh. It’s you. There you are. I’ve been looking for you for my whole life.’

**  
**

Gray’s half asleep at the break room table when a small box drops on to his head. He jerks awake, rubbing at his eyes and glaring up at Natsu.

“You’re not supposed to be back here,” He grumbles, reaching out and grabbing the box. It’s hair dye, a bright pink color streaked across the box.

“Mira let me back here,” He says, dropping into the seat across from Gray. He sighs and says goodbye to his thirty minutes of peace, and then looks at the box again and then back at Natsu.

“What do you want me to do with this?” He asks stupidly. Natsu scoffs and grabs the box from his hands.

“Dye my hair, obviously,” He says, already going to open the box. Gray snatches it out of his hands.

“God, impatient. I get off in two hours, come back then and we can go to your house. I’ll dye it there,” He hands the box back to Natsu when he’s sure he’s not going to rip it open and, knowing him, splatter hair dye all over the place.

“Yes! You’re the best, Gray,” Natsu leans down and presses a kiss to the top of his head and Gray swats at him, managing to smack the side of his head. He chuckles at Natsu’s outraged cry.

“Asshole,” He growls, bopping Gray on the top of the head.

“I’ll turn your hair green,” Gray warns, grabbing Natsu’s wrist when he goes in to tap him again. “Don’t be such a brat,” He tells him, and Natsu lifts his other hand to flick Gray’s ear. “Natsu, do you want to fucking fight me?” He growls out, letting go of his wrist to smack him in the stomach with the back of his hand. Natsu laughs and kicks his calf.

“Maybe later. Thanks!” He grabs the box of hair dye and leaves, but not before hitting Gray on the nose with the box.

**  
**

“He’s cute, isn’t he?” Mira chimes in her melodic voice when he finally comes out from the break room. Gray shrugs.

“Hes alright,” He responds, all mock nonchalance, and Mira giggles.

“I think you guys would be so cute together!” She leans against the counter and grins at him, and Gray can’t help but smile back. Mirajane is always so nice to them, and she’s the best with the customers out of everyone. She’s absolutely gorgeous, and her smile is infectious no matter how terrible Gray is feeling.

“Maybe one day,” Gray sighs and leans next to her.

“He really likes you, you know,” She nudges his leg with her ankle. “You should have seen his face when he walked in and saw you weren’t here. When I told him you were in the back, he practically lit up,” She tucks a piece of hair behind her ear. “I think you two could be good for each other.” Gray nods absently. He really hopes that she’s right.

**  
**

“Would you stay still?!” Gray knocks the back of his gloved hand against Natsu’s head, trying to keep him from moving.  
  
“The bleach burns,” Natsu whines, reaching up to scratch at the offending hair dye, but Gray smacks his hand away before he has the chance.

“I’m almost done! It’s just your roots, you baby,” He pushes away the already bleached parts of Natsu’s hair, focusing on the back of his head. He finishes up the tiny section he has left, then checks over it all to make sure it’s all been bleached. It’s already turning blonde, and Natsu looks a little ridiculous with half blonde, half faded pink hair. He takes mercy on the squirming boy underneath him and scratches his fingers gently across his scalp. Natsu sighs, pushing his head up against Gray’s nails and Gray honestly thinks that he’d be purring if it were possible.

“Alright, I aint standing here all day and scratching your head,” He scratches through the dye one last time and then tugs his gloves off, throwing them in the trash. He pulls the towel off from around Natsu’s shoulders and sets it on top of the counter in the bathroom. Natsu is only wearing a pair of sweat pants, his shirt and his scarf long since discarded so he wouldn’t ruin it. Gray hyperfixes on the scar on the side of his neck, reaching his fingers out to trace it before he has the chance to stop himself. He’s only really seen it once, Natsu never takes the scarf off unless they’re going to bed, but by then it’s dark and Gray is too tired to do anything but go to sleep. Natsu shivers against his fingers, tilting his head to the other side so that his neck is bared, and Gray kind of hates the fact that it turns him on. He doesn’t stop there, drags his hand back to trace the still pink scar crossing over Natsu’s shoulder blade. He keeps touching, tracing every minute scar that his eyes can find, until he comes to the tattoo. He traces over it with two fingers, his touch feather light. Natsu is warm beneath him, shaking and whimpering with goosebumps covering his flesh. His head is tipped back towards Gray, his eyes closed and his face flushed, and Gray’s hand feels unsteady and he realizes that he’s hard and aching in his jeans. He jerks his hand back and snaps out of his trance, his face burning when Natsu whines at the loss of contact.

“Sorry,” Gray’s voice is rough and shaking and he cringes at himself.

“‘S okay,” Natsu drops his head forward, and Gray takes the time to readjust himself discreetly. He really wants to bolt, shame and embarrassment coursing through his body. Natsu spins on the toilet seat and grins up at him, his hair spiked up and blonde and looking absolutely ridiculous, his face red but his eyes bright. Gray rethinks his stance on running, and realizes that he could stay here for the rest of his life.

**  
**

After the awkward sexual tension filled bathroom touching session, Gray tries to avoid touching Natsu at all costs. He doesn’t know what has him so worked up about it. They touch all the time, whether it be cuddling or petting or fighting, but this is. Different. It meant something more than their usual joined at the hip act that they put on, and he doesn’t want to think about it. So he does what he does best and avoids it. It’s really fucking hard, not touching Natsu, especially after he gets a haircut and comes to work with his hair unstyled, fluffy and soft looking. Still, he thinks he’s being pretty slick about it, dodging whenever Natsu reaches out to touch and standing behind Lucy or another Fairy Tail member as casually as possible, declining sleepovers and awkward hair petting, jerking his hands away when gets too close and shoving them in his pocket to avoid temptation, but due to the fact that Natsu is getting increasingly aggressive, picking more fights with him and throwing harder punches and using snarkier, harsher words, he thinks he might be wrong. They’re at the coffee shop, Gray playing games on his phone and ignoring Natsu’s burning glare. He jumps at the sound of the chair sliding across the floor.

“I’m so over this,” Natsu growls out. He slaps down a few bills on the counter and shoves his stuff angrily into his bag.

“Natsu, wait!” Gray jumps up, but he practically wilts under the heavy glare Natsu sends his way.

“Don’t. Send me a text when you get your head out of your ass,” He shakes his head and stalks out the door, practically slamming it on his way out. He hears footsteps pounding, and he really doesn’t want to deal with Gajeel’s attitude right now.

“The fuck was that?” He asks, standing in front of Gray and crossing his arms over his chest.

“Natsu being a bitch,” Gray huffs out, looking up towards Gajeel.

“He’s not being a bitch, you’re being a pussy. We all know you’re in love with him so why are you avoiding him?” Gray gapes at Gajeel, who scoffs and waves his hand at him.

“Man the fuck up, dude. Natsu practically creams his pants every time he sees you. Quit acting like this,” Gajeel spins on his heels and walks back towards the break room and Gray is at a loss for words. Did Gajeel really just give him advice? The world is tilting on its fucking axis and hell has frozen over.

**  
**

He needs to talk to Natsu. He knows this, and yet he can’t seem to man the hell up and text him. It’s been a few days since the storm out in Fairy Tail and he hasn’t seen Natsu since, but he hasn’t bothered to talk to him either. He’s walking home from his latest shift, kicking rocks and drowning in despair and indecision, when it happens. He hears Natsu’s voice, yelling about something, in an alleyway nearby.

“I’m not fucking doing it, dude!” He hears, and he halts on the sidewalk. He turns and look in the alleyway across the street from him and there’s Natsu, standing in front of a guy with gray hair spiked upwards and a pair of black sunglasses on.

“It’s not a big fucking deal,” The guy thrusts a package towards him and Natsu smacks it out of his hand, sending it flying towards the ground. White powder scatters everywhere when the package breaks and Gray realizes it’s cocaine.

“I’m not in your gang, Rusty,” Natsu shoves his hands in his pockets and he looks relaxed but Gray can see the tension in his muscles, the hardness in his jaw even from where he’s standing.

“My name is Rustyrose,” The guy growls and Natsu scoffs.

“What a lame fuckin name,” He insults.

“Better than Salamander?” Rusty questions, and quick as a flash Natsu is in front of him, pulling his lighter out with one hand and using his other to hold Rusty against the building. He holds his lighter up to Rusty’s face and flicks it on, the flame dangerously closing to burning skin. It happens so fast that Gray is pretty sure if he blinked he would have missed it.

“Wanna find out why they call me that?” He threatens, and Gray can practically sense the fear radiating from the other guy.

“Dude, chill,” He holds his hands up placatingly. “Your dragons just want you to finally man up and take care of the gang, dude. You’re their leader,” His voice is trembling. Natsu holds the lighter a bit closer but steps away eventually, snapping it closed and shoving the weapon back into his pocket. Rusty sags against the building.

“It’s not my gang and I’m not their leader,” He snarls out, and Gray’s about to walk away because this feels private, like something Natsu would be ashamed to be caught in. He takes a step but all it does is catch Rusty’s attention, his eyes dragging from Natsu to stare directly at Gray. He takes a stumbling step back and Rusty just keeps staring at him. He’s fucked.

“My my,” Rusty shoves Natsu back and stalks across the street, and Gray steps back until the shadows from the alley behind him engulfs him. Rusty still follows him, and soon he’s up close and personal and Gray feels like hes a prey being stalked by a predator.

“Looks like we’ve got a little stalker. Just what did you hear, kid? Cause I bet it ain’t pretty, and I can just let you walk away with that knowledge, you get me?” He reaches out a hand to touch him, but Natsu is there before he has a chance. He slams Rusty back against the wall and presses his forearm against his neck. Rusty squawks out a garbled protest and reaches up to claw at Natsu’s arm, but Natsu doesn’t budge.

“If you tell anyone about him, or if you touch him, I swear to god I will destroy you and scatter your pieces across Magnolia,” Natsu growls out, and Gray is kind of terrified for the other guy. Who looks like he’s gonna piss his pants.

“Alright, boss,” Rusty garbles out, and Natsu pulls back his other hand and punches him square in the nose.

“I’m not your fucking boss,” He calls out over the scream of pain from Rusty. “And if I ever catch you dealing drugs on my streets again, I’ll do worse than break your nose,” He pulls his arm away and steps back, and Rusty scrambles to suck in lungfuls of air. Gray watches the whole thing with an almost numb recognition, realizing that this is a member of Natsu’s gang, realizing that this guy in front of him is dangerous and he should be scared.

“Now scram,” Natsu demands, wiping the blood off of his knuckles on to his shirt.

“Just remember,” Rusty wipes at the blood covering his face and starts to step out of the alleyway. “That tattoo? Always gonna make you one of us,” He walks away, Natsu screaming after him, “I got it for my dad, asshole!” Rusty laughs, and Natsu stamps his foot like an overgrown toddler ready for a temper tantrum. He turns to Gray and practically rushes at him, and Gray falls back against the wall when Natsu grabs at him. So much has happened so fast that it makes his head spin, makes him dizzy and disoriented, and Natsu’s hands touching and grabbing are the one thing that keep him grounded to the present.

“You okay? Did he touch you?” He asks, running his hands over Gray’s body, over and over again, and Gray tries to focus as much on his voice as possible.

“No, he - I’m fine,” Gray tells him. He reaches out and grabs Natsu’s wrist when the touching won’t let up, when it grows in intensity, like he’s desperate to touch as much of Gray as he possibly can. “Natsu, hey. I’m fine, promise,” He laces their fingers together and forgets about his no touching rule. He’s starved for it, he realizes, feeling Natsu’s warm hands interlock with his. How could he ever not want this? Natsu stares at him, then rips his hands away. Gray tries not to feel too hurt, he brought this upon himself.

“Good. Then what the hell do you think you were doing?!” He asks, all anger and accusing tone, and Gray glares at him. So much for that moment. Natsu always did have a short fuse and an even shorter attention span.

“I was walking home, asshole!” He shoves at Natsu to get him away. “God, and here I thought it would be easy to fucking talk to you. If you’re going to be such a dick about that then I won’t bother!” He goes to walk away but Natsu grabs at his wrist and halts him, though he doesn’t have to try very hard. Gray stops willingly as soon as he feels Natsu’s touch.

“Talk about what, Gray?” Natsu’s voice is starkly different than how it had been two seconds ago, soft and patient, and it makes Gray relax.

“About the fact that I,” He struggles to stutter out the next words. He’s never been good with talking about his feelings. “That I like you,” He grits out through bared teeth. There’s silence, and then Natsu laughs.

“God, Lucy was right. You do have ice for brains,” Gray doesn’t get time to defend himself before Natsu is tugging. He slams Gray against the brick wall of the alley and then presses their lips together. It happens so fast that Gray doesn’t even realize what’s gone down until he feels the press of warm, dry lips against his. He melts into it easily, lifting his arms to tangle his fingers into Natsu’s freshly dyed, bright pink hair. Natsu kisses the way he does everything else in his life; forcefully and unapologetically. Gray takes a moment to revel in it, the hard press of Natsu’s body caging him against the wall, the demanding way that he grabs at Gray’s hips, before he flips them with practiced ease and presses Natsu against the wall. It’s easy to take control of the kiss from there, tugging harshly on Natsu’s hair. Natsu opens his mouth on a gasp and Gray takes the advantage, sliding their tongues together. Natsu takes like mint toothpaste and chocolate candy, his mouth warm and pliant, and Gray really needs to stop this before it gets out of hand. He pulls away and practically melts when Natsu presses up, chasing his lips.

“Trying to take it slow here, pyro,” Gray pants, resting his forehead against Natsu’s.

“It’s been almost three months, this is long overdue,” Natsu grumbles. He wraps a hand around Gray’s neck and drags him down. Gray has no choice but to go, their lips catching together again. He doesn’t know how long they stand there, warm breaths ghosting over each other’s cheeks as they kiss slow and soft, before Natsu digs overly sharp canines into Gray’s bottom lip. Gray whines, his body jolting slightly at the pain, and he can feel Natsu’s grin against his lips. This guy is going to be the death of them. Gray shoves his thigh in between Natsu’s legs and Natsu whimpers then moans, canting his hips against Gray’s thigh, and its hotter than Gray will ever admit.

“This is the literal opposite,” Gray gets out between one kiss and the next. “Of slow,” he finishes. Natsu refuses to let him go though, digging his fingers harshly in Gray’s shirt and continuing his slow grinding. Gray feels like he’s about to explode, his jeans tight and painful against his cock.

“Told you we’ve taken it slow enough,” Natsu gasps against Gray’s mouth, a high pitched whining following his words. Gray tightens his fingers in pink hair at the sound and steels his resolve, nipping at Natsu’s lips before taking a stumbling step backwards. Natsu reaches out for him, but Gray shakes his head. Natsu looks absolutely fucked, leaning against the wall with rumpled clothing and mussed hair, his lips red and his jeans tented with an obvious hard on. It weakens his defense and when Natsu moves forward again he doesn’t stop him, letting himself be pushed against the opposite wall and their lips pressed together again. Natsu presses their hips together and grinds, pleasure racking Gray’s body and making him shiver. They’re practically fucking in an alleyway, Natsu grinding against him over and over again. He’s about two seconds away from coming in his pants like a teenager when there’s an ominous crack of thunder, and then the sky opens and buckets of rain crash down on to Gray’s head. Natsu laughs against his lips and the feeling makes him dizzy. He surges forward and swallows the sound, his fingers digging into Natsu’s hair. The rain makes their kiss slick and wet, but his arousal slowly dies down with the sticky, uncomfortable feeling that comes from wet clothes and denim jeans sticking to him. He pulls away and scrubs the rain out of his eyes. Natsu does the same, and then Gray cant help but laugh at the sight of him. He has pink running down his face in rivulets from the hair dye, staining his white shirt and making him look ridiculous.

“Come on,” Natsu grins at him, holding his hand out. Even with the hair dye running down, he looks absolutely adorable, his usually immaculately styled hair plastered to his forehead. Gray wishes he would leave it alone more often if this is what it looks like without any styling. He grabs Natsu’s hand and they run, shoving and laughing and splashing in puddles as they book it back to Gray’s apartment.

**  
**

“You’re dripping pink all over my carpet!” Ultear huffs out, arms crossed over her chest while she stares the two boys down. Natsu shakes his head out like a dog, spraying Ultear and Gray with pink tinted water. Gray laughs and lifts his hand in a shield, and even Ultear giggles.

“You two are insane,” She tells them, and reaches out to ruffle their soaked hair affectionately. “Go take a warm shower before you guys get sick. I’ll make some hot cocoa.”

“Thanks, sis,” Gray scoops her up into a hug before she can stop him, and she squeals as he rubs himself all over her, effectively soaking her clothes.

“Gray, I swear to god! Put me down!” She demands, kicking and punching. Gray takes mercy on her and lets her down, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

“And I’m the crazy one,” Natsu rolls his eyes and then runs towards them. “First shower!” He says, shoving Gray out of the way as he bolts to the bathroom.

“Don’t stain my towels!” Ultear calls after him and Gray grins. He loves his family.

“Go dry off,” She orders kindly, tugging on his hair like she used to when they were kids. Gray salutes her and walks into his bedroom, grabbing a towel from the linen closet as he does so. He strips down to his boxers and then unfolds the towel, running it over his hair again and again until it’s fluffy and semi dry. He runs his fingers through it until it looks almost respectable, then changes into a dry pair of underwear and throws his wet clothes into a heap next to his laundry basket. Natsu walks in after he climbs into bed, a white towel around his waist and a pink one in his hands.

“Good idea,” Gray smirks and Natsu flicks him off, tipping his head down and ruffling his hair with the towel until it’s dry. His skin is tinged slightly pink from the heat of the shower and he has water dripping down his chest. Gray wants to lick it off.

“Got any clothes I can borrow?” Natsu asks, throwing the wet towel towards Gray’s pile of clothes once he’s done with it. Gray gestures towards his dresser, and Natsu takes the invitation and starts ruffling through it. He pulls out a pair of worn sweatpants that Gray forgot he even had and a red shirt. Gray looks away when Natsu drops the towel, though he supposes he has no room to talk about inappropriate stripping habits. He feels the bed dip and looks back over, then instantly regrets it. Natsu looks amazing, his hair fluffy and curling over his ears and soft looking, dressed in Gray’s clothes that hang off of him a bit and his scarf tied around his head, holding back some of his damp hair. It’s dry enough that it won’t stain the white fabric, and Natsu looks so damn good like that, so he isn’t complaining. Gray kind of wants to wrap him in a warm blanket and never let him go.

“Hot cocoa!” Ultear calls from outside his door, and Gray gets up to let her in. She hands him two warm mugs and then smiles softly at him. “I havent seen you smile like that since mom died,” She says, not unkindly, and he feels himself go cold and then hot all over.

“Thanks, Tea,” He says quietly and then kicks the door shut.

“What were you two whispering about?” Natsu asks, accepting the mug Gray hands out to him. He climbs on to the bed carefully and shrugs.

“Nothing important,” He tells Natsu. He grabs his Roku remote from off the bedside table, turning on Netflix and putting on The Office. They settle into a comfortable silence, laying next to each other on the bed while slowly slipping their hot chocolate. Once both mugs are empty and they’re warm from the inside out, Natsu turns to look at him.

“So,” He starts out awkwardly, tracing his fingers absently against Gray’s covers. “What now?” He asks, looking up at him. Gray grabs his hand and laces their fingers together.

“Whatever you want,” He tells him. Natsu grins and leans up, and Gray leans down to meet him halfway. Kissing Natsu makes him feel giddy, and he lets go of his hand to cup Natsu’s cheek.

“Boyfriends?” Natsu asks against his mouth and Gray shivers slightly.

“Boyfriends,” He agrees, nodding his head gently. Natsu climbs across the bed and into Gray’s lap, leaning down to reconnect their lips. Gray reaches out to hold on to his hips. Despite their heated make out session in the alley this kiss is slow, soft and deliberate and sweet, kissing just for the sake of kissing. Natsu is a comforting weight on top of him, grounding him to reality, and Gray doesn’t think he’s ever been happier.

**  
**

“It finally stopped raining,” Natsu comments a few hours later. They’ve yet to move from the bed, Natsu curled up on Gray’s chest and his hand splayed across his stomach. Gray nods, sliding his hand through Natsu’s hair and carefully avoiding his scarf. Natsu props himself up on his elbow and looks down at him.

“Lets go to the cat shelter,” Natsu demands and Gray groans. It’s been a while since they’ve been there but Natsu hasn’t stopped looking for a cat. “Come on, they’ve got new cats that I want to look at! Please? Let’s go!” He tugs at Gray’s hand and forces him to sit up.

“Fine, fine,” Gray sighs and leans forward, kissing Natsu gently. “Lemme get dressed,” He climbs out of the bed and pulls on a sweater and a pair of ripped black jeans. He shoves his feet into some shoes and grabs his phone, wallet and car keys.

“Lets go,” He jerks his head towards the door and Natsu whoops, pulling on his shoes as well. He undoes his scarf and fixes it to sit around his neck.

“Thanks, babe!” He calls over his shoulder, already running out of the door, and Gray’s heart stutters at the pet name. The drive to the cat shelter is short but Natsu still manages to get sick.

“You’re so weak,” Gray rubs his back when they climb out of the car, Natsu leaning against the door with his head hung low and his shoulders hunched.

“Okay, I feel better!” Natsu perks up and Gray shakes his head. His boyfriend is insane. “Kitty time!” He bolts into the shelter and Gray follows him at a much more calm pace. The guy working the front desk points to the door behind him that leads into the shelter and Gray nods his thanks. It’s easy to find Natsu, running back and forth between the cages and cooing at all the animals. He leans against the wall next to the door and watches him, until he sinks to his knees at one of the cages and sticks his fingers in between the bars, cooing and speaking quietly to the cat. Gray walks over and sits next to him. The cat in the cage has gray, almost blue fur, with a round belly streaked through with white, fluffy fur. He can’t be more than a year old, if that, judging by how tiny he is.

“This one?” Gray asks. It’s the first cat that Natsu has really taken a liking to, the first cat that he actually sat down next to and paid attention to.

“This one,” Natsu confirms.

**  
**

It takes an hour and a half to sign all the paperwork to get the cat and drive home, the cat meowing loudly in the backseat the whole time. Natsu’s motion sickness gets forgotten in the excitement as he practically bounces up and down in the seat, his grin never fading.

“So what are you going to name him?” Gray asks, following Natsu from room to room as he introduces the cat to the litter box and the food bowls and the scratching post. He’s had cat stuff set up for months, and he sporadically buys toys whenever the mood hits. Gray has lost count of how many he has.

“Happy,” Natsu finally sets the cat down on his bed, and he climbs into Natsu’s lap and curls his tail over his eyes, seemingly falling asleep. Gray chuckles and pets him gently.

“That’s a dumb name,” He argues just for the sake of arguing, but he has to admit that seeing the cat curled around Natsu makes him feel a bit more than just happy.

“He’s my cat, suck it,” Natsu huffs out, flicking Gray in the nose. Gray growls and tackles him, scaring Happy, who hisses at him then scrambles out of the room.

“Hey!” Natsu scowls and Gray kisses it off his face.

**  
**

It’s been two weeks since they’ve started dating. It’s kind of amazing how quickly it goes, but it doesn’t feel any different from normal. The only thing that changes is that he gets to kiss Natsu whenever he feels like it, and he spends more time running back and forth between his home and Natsu’s. Natsu almost always sleeps over his house, but they always spend the day together at Natsu’s. It’s because Happy is there, and Natsu doesn’t really want to leave his cat alone. Ever.

“Your food is so terrible not even the cat will eat it,” Gray says as he scrapes his plate into Happy’s bowl. The cat wrinkles his nose and then walks away. Natsu pouts, poking at the failed attempt of meatloaf with his spatula.

“Pizza?” Gray asks, walking up behind him and wrapping his arms around Natsu’s waist. Natsu leans back into him, dropping the spatula with a mournful sigh.

“Pizza,” He agrees. They spend the rest of the night fooling around, playing Mario Kart and Super Smash bros and fighting each other when they beat the other one. It’s so easy to fall into companionship with Natsu, so easy to steal a bite of his pizza and dodge his hits and roll around on the carpet with him. To push him to throw him off his game and scream at him and laugh with him. Natsu’s like a piece that he didn’t know was missing, something that makes him feel whole and happy, truly happy. For the first time in a long time. He’s found his home with Natsu, and he doesn’t want to let it go. He falls asleep at his house later that night, tucked under the comforters and full of pizza and laughter. He doesn’t really mean to but it’s so easy to drift off to the sound of a cat purring directly on his chest and the feeling of Natsu curled into his side. He wakes up to the soft strumming of an acoustic guitar and sunlight filtering through the window, catching on Natsu’s back and highlighting his tanned skin.

“I need you baby,” Natsu sings softly, and Gray settles into the comforter as the sound washes over him. “And if it’s quite alright, I need you baby, to warm the lonely nights,” Natsu’s voice is soft but warm, like the setting sun, and smooth like velvet. It flows over Gray and settles an ache in his chest, and his fingers itch with the need to reach out and touch Natsu’s naked back. His back muscles shift as he strums, and Gray watches with rapt attention.

“I love you baby, trust in me when I say. Oh pretty baby, don’t let me down, I pray. Oh pretty baby, now that I found you, stay,” He looks over his shoulder as he sings and catches Gray’s eyes, this devilish smirk on his face and he’s so handsome that Gray’s heart spasms pathetically. He finally reaches out and touches Natsu’s skin, warm from the sun and soft to the touch. He traces shapes against his skin, circles and words and nonsense.

“And let me love you, baby. Let me love you. You’re just too good to be true, can’t take my eyes off of you. You’d be like heaven to touch, I wanna hold you so much,” There’s this tension in the air, something palpable as they hold eye contact and Natsu sings to him. He surges up at the last line and wraps his arms tightly around Natsu, burying his face in the back of his neck. The strumming fades out, and Natsu leans forward to set the worn guitar down on to the ground.

“Good morning,” Natsu greets, dropping his hands to rest over Gray’s on his stomach.

“What a wake up call,” Gray gets out against his neck. He feels weird, after the impromptu serenade. A good weird. He wants to spend all day in Natsu’s bed, wrapped in sheets that smell like him, and listening to him sing. He’s so gone for him.

“Thought it would be nicer than screaming in your face,” Natsu turns around and presses their lips together and Gray doesn’t even mind the morning breath as they kiss slow and soft, Happy curled up against Natsu’s thigh and snoring quietly. It feels like warmth, this little moment of time that’s meant for just them, and only them.

**  
**

“Why did you drag me along to this?” Natsu whines from behind him, his feet audibly dragging. Gray rolls his eyes and spins around to scoff at him, continuing to walk backwards.

“I literally didnt. I told you that I was going to register for second semester and then told you how boring it would be. Then you told me to take you and I said no and you got in the car then almost threw up all over my rug,” He replays the scenario over in his head, and Natsu moans pathetically at the mention of the car ride. He perks up and reaches out for Gray, but he doesn’t make it in time before Gray slams into another body and sends them both careening to the ground.

“Oh shit,” Gray sits up and turns to the person, apology on his tongue, but it dies when he sees who it is.

“Sting!” He grins and reaches out, clapping Sting on the back amicably. The blonde grins at him and stands, reaching his hand out for Gray to take, which he does. When they’re both standing they hug, and Gray looks around for Sting’s constant shadow.

“Where Ryos?” He asks, scanning the room, and Sting pouts.

“You know he likes to be called Rogue,” He chastises and Gray waves him off. “Anyways, hes sick. I’m signing him up for his classes since he couldn’t make it. What are you doing here, I thought you registered online?” He shoves his hands into his pockets.

“Fucking internet is out, and they can’t get it fixed till Monday. I didnt wanna wait and have all the good classes be filled,” Hes kind of glad that he had to come here, if it meant getting to talk to Sting. They were in a few classes together last semester and them and Rogue got along like they’d known each other their whole lives, and even better after Gajeel, Rogue’s brother, had started working at the cafe.

“Damn, that sucks. I know Rogue is gonna be pissy that I got to talk to you and he didn’t,” Sting grins at him and Gray rolls his eyes.

“It’s like you guys are in a constant pissing contest. Make love, not war, Sting,” He tsks, shaking his head in mock disappointment. The three of them had been known to get into their fair share of fake fist fights, trading blows until a teacher would come along and tell them to knock it off. He hears a cough behind him and spins around. Natsu looks absolutely murderous, glaring down at Sting, who looks surprised and delighted to see him.

“Oh, yeah! This is Natsu,” Gray grabs Natsu’s sleeve and tugs him closer so they’re standing next to each other. “Play nice,” He whispers but it falls on deaf ears.

“I’m his boyfriend,” Natsu informs without any prompting and Gray groans, dropping his head into his hands. Stupid jealous boy. Sting looks confused but he’s still smiling, and Gray has to give him props for that.

“I figured,” He nods his head. “I also have a boyfriend. Glad we cleared that up,” He claps Gray on the shoulder and then ruffles his hair, his smile turning into a smirk. “I’ll see you on the first day, Gray, and I’ll give Rogue your regards. It was nice seeing you.” Gray grumbles his goodbye, flattening down his hair, but waves as Sting walks away. He lets Natsu stew in his anger as he drags him around the college, signing up for almost all the classes he had last semester and replacing the ones he hated with new ones that sound interesting. It’s only another thirty minutes before they’re done and Natsu hasn’t said a word the whole time.

“Alright,” Gray says as they walk out. He drags him to the side of the building so they have more privacy from the people walking in and out of the front doors. “Could you quit your pouting? It’s not-oof!” He doesn’t get to finish before Natsu slams him against the wall of the building. This is going to be a thing with them, he can tell. Natsu kisses him harshly, hard and demanding and taking, and Gray melts into it despite himself.

“Mine,” Natsu growls against his lips and that one word sends heat sparking across his spine, pooling in his belly and shooting straight to his cock.

“Yes, okay, Sting is - ah!” Natsu cuts him off with a sharp bite to his neck and Gray moans, his head dropping to the side.

“Mine,” Natsu repeats more forcefully, dragging his teeth across the sensitive skin on Gray’s neck, and he whimpers.

“Yours, okay, yours,” He reaches out and digs his fingers into Natsu’s hips, whining pathetically when Natsu sucks on his skin.

“Okay, Natsu, ah,” He drops his head against the wall, sliding his fingers under Natsu’s shirt to rub against his warm skin. “You’re gonna leave a mark, baby, come on,” He doesn’t try to pull away despite his protesting.

“Already have,” Natsu breathes against his spit slick skin and it makes him shiver. He bites hard into the bruise and then soothes the sting with his tongue, and Gray moans and presses his hard cock against the curve of Natsu’s hip.

“Stop defiling me at my college,” Gray orders, but his voice is weak even to his own ears.

“Doesn’t really sound like you’re complaining,” Natsu pulls back slightly and then leans in again, pressing their lips together. He uses one hand to grab at Gray’s hip and press him against the building, snaking the other one down between their bodies and palming Gray through his jeans. Gray’s entire body goes hot and he tries to jerk his hips against Natsu’s hand but fails, his boyfriends hold keeping him firmly in place.

“Come on, Natsu, not here,” He practically begs. The fact that someone could turn the side of the building and see him, whining and whimpering like a pathetic mess, should make his dick go soft and his arousal go down but all it does is excite him more, make him want it more. He doesn’t have time to dwell on his new found kink before Natsu unbuttons his jeans and shoves his hand down his pants, wrapping his warm hand around Gray’s cock. Gray slams his head against the wall of the building at the contact, trying desperately to push his hips up. Natsu moves his hand slowly and Gray hisses.

“Ow, okay, too dry,” He presses away from his hand, and Natsu has the decency to look sheepish as he pulls his hand away. He brings it to his mouth and sticks his tongue out, licking across it in one long, wet swipe that makes Gray whimper at the sight. He shoves his hand back down, using his other one to push Gray’s pants down so they hang around his thighs. It’s broad daylight, dammit, any one person could walk by and see them and Gray would probably go to fucking jail. All the same, he drops his head back and shoves his fist in his mouth, drowning out his moan when Natsu’s hand finally moves, delicious friction sending shockwaves of pleasure through his body.

“Fuck, Natsu,” He huffs out around his fingers, and Natsu’s smirk does nothing but turn him on more. He drops his head and sucks at Gray’s neck, biting and licking, and Gray feels like he’s about to explode. He bucks his hips up and keeps doing it when he finds out that Natsu has finally let go, giving him free range to move. At this point he’s doing nothing more than fucking into Natsu’s fist while Natsu attacks his neck with teeth and tongue. It’s not long before the heat spikes in his belly and his thrusts become more erratic, Natsu finally taking over for him and moving his fist fast and rough. Gray pulls his hand from his mouth and uses it tug Natsu’s scarf apart with quick fingers, leaving it hanging uselessly around his shoulders. He shoves his face into Natsu’s neck and bites down on a moan, reveling in the feeling of Natsu shivering against him.

“Fuck, fuck,” Gray tangles his fingers in Natsu’s hair and tugs, hard, and Natsu moans and that’s all it takes to sends him over the edge, his cum splattering against the sidewalk and leaking over Natsu’s hand. He licks across the bite on Natsu’s neck and then leans back, shaking against the wall. Natsu pulls his hand away and then makes eye contact with Gray as he puts his fingers to his mouth and licks the cum off of them.

“Oh god, how are you real?” Gray whines and drags Natsu in for a kiss by his hair. Natsu goes willingly, sighing against Gray’s mouth. Gray can feel his hard cock against his thigh and he takes the opportunity to switch them, turning so he has Natsu pressed against the wall. He tucks his softening dick back into his pants and pulls them back up, buttoning them with one hand.

“Your turn,” He whispers against Natsu’s neck, shoving his hand down Natsu’s jeans as he says it. Natsu whines.

**  
**

“Invest in a damn scarf,” Lucy hisses at him, grabbing at his shirt collar and trying to twist it to cover the hickeys spattered across his neck, to no avail. “God, it’s only been a month and you two are already fucking like animals,” She groans. Gray can’t even find it in himself to be ashamed.

“It’s not my fault your brother has teeth like a damn shark!” He smacks Lucy’s hand away from his neck and she glares at him, then kicks his calf gently.

“You ever heard of the word no?!” She yells at him. Gray smirks.

“I was too busy screaming yes instead,” Lucy gasps at him, then starts smacking her hands against any part of him that she can reach.

“You pervert! He’s my brother! I dont wanna hear that! Stupid stripper!” Gray laughs and shoves her away gently. She goes back in to hit him but the bell above the door jingles and they both look up as Bisca scrambles through the door, her hair in a disarray and Asca balanced on her hip.

“Asca!” Gray runs out from behind the counter and scoops the little girl up. She giggles and puts her chubby little hands on his cheeks, squeezing his face together.

“Uncle Gray!” She squeaks with delighted laughter as he bounces her up and down on his hip.

“What are you doing here, munchkin?” He asks, sweeping down to kiss her cheek over and over again. She giggles and tugs on his ear.

“I’m sorry,” Bisca sounds exhausted and miserable. “Zack’s helping Levy and Gajeel move in together and the babysitter canceled on us at the very last minute,” She leans against the counter, her arms over her chest and her eyes closed. “I couldnt find anyone to watch her.”

“‘S okay, mama!” Asca chimes in, wiggling in Gray’s hold until he lets her down and she runs over to Bisca’s legs, wrapping her arms around them. “You said Natsu’s the nicest, bestest boy there is! He can watch me!” Biscas face turns red, but she smiles hopefully at Gray.

“Uh, hes not here right now,” He looks around with a frown. “But I’m about to go on break anyways. I can text Natsu and watch her while we wait, yeah?” Lucy shoots him a look. He’s already taken a break today, but he can lose thirty minutes of pay to watch Asca. Any other place it probably wouldn’t be allowed, but the little girl is Gramps goddaughter, and he loves her like she was his own. He’d allow it.

“Really? Oh god, thank you so much, Gray!” Bisca envelopes him in a hug and Asca joins in, clinging to his legs like a weight. Gray laughs and leans down to pick her up.

“Alright, little one, lets go call Natsu,” He walks around the counter, balancing Asca on his hip. Bisca clocks in and he clocks out, then walks around to the break room. He tugs out his phone and unlocks it, then clicks on Natsu’s contact and facetimes him. It rings for a few seconds and then Natsu’s face shows up on the screen, looking sleepy.

“Hey,” He grumbles out, rubbing at his eyes. Gray hears Happy mrow in the background.

“You’re still asleep?” Gray scoffs and rearranges Asca to be more comfortable on his lap. “It’s past noon, Natu.”

“Shut up, you degenerate stripper,” Natsu drops his hands from his eyes and pushes himself up so he’s sitting. “Uh, did you get a baby while I was out?” Gray shakes his head and Asca giggles.

“This is Asca. Say hi, bub,” Asca waves with a pretty grin, her cheeks tinted pink.

“Well aren’t you just the prettiest girl?” Natsu smiles at her and her blush grows. She plants her feet on Gray’s thighs and stands up, leaning in to whisper into his ear.

“He’s pretty,” She mumbles and Gray grins.

“Hes my boyfriend,” He whispers back, and she gasps like it’s the most surprising thing she’s ever heard.

“Like mommy and daddy!” She exclaims.

“Like mommy and daddy before they had you,” He pokes her in the stomach and she dissolves into giggles, dropping back down to sit nicely in his lap.

“So what’s up?” Natsu asks once their whispering stops.

“Her babysitter quit last minute and her moms got a shift today. Think you could do me a huge solid and come and watch her?” He asks with his most charming smile, and Natsu waves him off.

“Yeah dude, course. I’m great with little kids. I’ll be there in ten, kay?” He waves bye to both of them and then hangs up, and Gray sets his phone down on the table. They spend the next ten minutes in the break room, Gray doodling a few pictures for Asca to color in. When Natsu walks in the back Asca perks up, then shrinks back down to press against Gray.

“He’s super nice, I promise,” Gray pats her head gently. “Go say hi,” He picks her up off his lap and sets her down and she takes a few cautious steps towards Natsu, who drops to his knee to be at her level.

“Hey there, sweetheart,” He greets, smile warm and welcome and Asca waves shyly.

“Were gonna have some fun today, yeah?” Natsu asks. Gray rips out the page of the drawing they were coloring in, and gets up to hand it to Asca.

“Go on, hand it over,” He shoves her gently towards Natsu, and she holds the picture up and thrusts it at him.

“Here go,” She mumbles and Natsu gently takes the paper from her.

“Wow, just for me? Thanks!” He pats her hair gently and then studies the picture. It’s a quick drawing of a superhero, fashioned after Natsu himself, and Asca had colored it in with bright, wild colors.

“I’ll treasure it always,” He tells her after he’s done looking it over, and looks up at Gray with a wink. He carefully slides it into his bag, careful not to wrinkle it, then stands and holds his hand out for Asca to take it.

“Let’s go say bye to mama, kay? I was thinking we could go to the park for a while, hows that sound?” He explains what he’s got planned for their day as they walk out of the back, Asca jumping up and down excitedly. He’s still smiling fondly at the spot they were once at when Lucy finds him.

“Hey, Gray,” She says quietly, nervously, and Gray frowns at her.

“What’s up, Luce?” He walks up to her and bumps their shoulders together.

“I was wrong,” She admits, looking up at him. “When I said that you should stay away from Natsu. I was so wrong. I’ve never seen him this happy, not even as a kid,” She looks like she’s about to cry. “And it’s good. It’s so good. You’re so good for him,” She wipes at her eyes and then tackles him, her arms wrapping tightly around his waist. “Thank you for taking care of my brother,” She breathes into his chest. Gray sighs and wraps his arms around her in return, dropping his chin on top of her head.

“‘S okay, Lucy,” He reassures her, running his hand up and down her back. “He’s fine. It’s okay,” He knows they never talked about it. About what Natsu found, what he learned, about the fact that he just up and left his little sister without so much as a note. He knows that it drives Lucy crazy with worry, and that all she wants is for her brother to speak to her. It’s been four months and they haven’t talked about it at all, and he knows what it’s doing to Lucy. He’s content to spend the rest of his break in the back, holding Lucy and pretending that his shirt isn’t getting wet from her tears.

**  
**

“You look like a kids fucked up art project,” Lyon outright laughs at him when he gets home from work that night, and Gray slaps his hand over his neck in an effort of covering what’s already been seen.

“Yeah? Bet you ain’t any better under that shirt. I know Juvia likes to bite,” He smirks at his little brother. He wishes he didn’t know that information but he does, and it’s so much fun to taunt Lyon.

“You shut up about her,” Lyon orders angrily, and Gray smirks at him.

“Her teeth are sharper than they look, aren’t they?” How could he ever pass up this chance to make fun of his brother and hold the fact that love of his life loved him first over his head?

“Gray!” Lyon lunges at him and Gray side steps easily, causing Lyon to face plant on the floor. He feels a harsh tug on his shirt and then he’s sent careening to the ground, his hip smacking painfully against the hardwood.

“Asshole!” Gray jumps on top of Lyon and punches him in the stomach, but Lyon grabs his wrist and pushes backwards, twisting while he goes so that Gray is face down on the floor, his face pushed against the hardwood and his arm twisted behind his back by Lyon.

“Take it back!” Lyon screams. Gray yells at him, fruitlessly trying to kick his back with his feet.

“Never! I bet she’s a wild animal in bed!” He eggs on. “She tried to get me to spank her once,” He informs him. Lyon gasps and then yells, grabbing Gray’s hair in his hand and pulling, then smacking his face back down on the floor. Gray curses as pain shoots through his head. He twists his hand until he feels Lyon’s skin, then pinches harshly.

“Did you just pinch me?!” Lyon jerks his hand back and Gray bucks wildly, until his brother crashes to the ground. He jumps on top of him and slaps him across the face.

“You could have broken my arm, fuckhead!” He yells at him, grabbing a fistful of his hair and tugging on it harshly. Lyon whines in pain and then reaches up to punch him, but Gray grabs his wrist and pins it to the floor. He uses Lyon’s hair to lift his head up and slam it back against the ground like his brother had done to him, except it’s the back of Lyon’s head that hits the ground.

“Natsu punches harder than you do!” He taunts him.

“Natsu is a fucking freaky sadist!” Lyon shouts back.

“Don’t talk about my boyfriend like that!” Gray slams his head back against the ground and Lyon finally breaks his wrist free, punching Gray directly in the mouth. Gray falls off him, his hand coming up to touch his mouth and coming away red with blood.

“Hey, that’s against the rules! Ultear made it very clear we aren’t allowed to make each other bleed anymore!”

“Ultear isn’t here, is she?” Lyon responds, standing up, and Gray tackles him back to ground.

“Well in that case,” He says as he pulls his hand back and punches Lyon in the stomach harshly, and then in the side of his face, then again in his mouth.

“Get the fuck off me, you monster!” Lyon tries shoving him but he doesn’t budge.

“You drew first blood!” He hears the front door click open but he doesn’t bother to take his eyes off Lyon for a second.

“You drew three times that amount!” Lyon punches him in the stomach and Gray finally falls off him, his chest heaving and his body aching. They haven’t fought like this in a while.

“Uh,” He hears, and he tilts his head back so that he’s looking at the newcomer upside down. “What did I just walk in to?” Natsu asks, looking adorably confused. Gray stands up and spits a wad of blood into the sink.

“Hey, babe,” He greets casually, wiping his arm across his mouth.

“Hey, Natsu,” Lyon adds just as casually. He stands up and claps Gray on the back. “Right, I’m meeting with Juvia. See you guys!” He walks out the front door and Gray waves at him. Natsu looks even more confused than he first did.

“What just happened?” Natsu asks, looking between Gray and the door.

“Sibling rivalry,” Gray says nonchalantly. “How’d you get in here?”

“You left the door unlocked,” Natsu sets his bag down on the counter and toes his shoes off. “I texted you like five times and told you I was outside but you never replied so I just let myself in.”

“Oh, sorry about that,” Gray pulls his phone out and turns the sound on, his screen covered in Natsu’s texts. “Forgot to turn my sound on,” He walks over to Natsu and leans in for a kiss, but Natsu shoves him away.

“Ew, snowflake, you’ve got blood in your teeth. Go wash your mouth out,” He orders. Gray shrugs and kisses Natsu’s forehead, leaving behind a bloody lip print. Natsu scowls and reaches up to rub it away. “And you say I’m disgusting!” He calls after him. Gray chuckles as he flips on the light switch. Lyon and him may be as different as can be, and they may fight like it was to the death, but no one understood him as well as his brother. He washes out his mouth with warm water and spits it back into the sink, then takes a capful of mouthwash to get the taste out. It burns like a bitch, stinging the cuts that he got when his soft flesh dug into the sharpness of his teeth. He spits that out then rinses with water again, and shuts the light off as he leaves.

“All better,” He bares his teeth for Natsu to see, and he tuts as he grabs Gray’s lower lip and inspects the damage, the battered and torn skin.

“I coulda hit you harder than that,” He says, letting Gray’s lip go.

“That’s exactly what I said! Anyway, what’d ya bring?” He asks, grabbing at the bag and going through it.

“Ice cream and chinese food. Figured you’d be hungry after a ten hour shift,” He says, starting to pull out the various food items. Gray grins and presses a kiss to the top of his head. He was wrong. There’s one other person who understands him better than his brother.

**  
**

ashes: SOS  
ashes: GRAY  
ashes: GRAY WAKE UP PLS I NEED U  
ashes: ITS AN EMERGENCY

Gray jolts up as his phone buzzes and dings, grabbing for it blindly while wiping the sleep out of his eyes. He clicks it on to see multiple notifications from Natsu, and the blaring white numbers that let him know it’s just a little past four am.

me: jesus what  
me: it’s four am  
me: go to sleep  
ashes: THANK GOD  
ashes: UR AWAKE  
me: because of you, asshat!  
ashes: it’s an emergency!  
me: it better be good

He flops back down against the bed, pulling the covers tight around him. He can’t believe he has to deal with this.

ashes: fred dies :(  
me: oh  
me: my fucking god  
me: you’re joking  
me: tell me you’re joking  
ashes: GRAY  
ashes: ITS FUCKING SAD  
me: blocked.

He goes over to Natsu’s contact settings and hits the block number button, effectively silencing his phone, but’s it’s only two seconds later that Natsu messages him on facebook.

Natsu Dragneel: wait unblock me i have something 2 say

Gray swipes away the message and hits unblock, his head starting to pound from the light from his phone and the sudden ripping out of his dream state.

me: what  
ashes: bitch.  
me: N A T S U  
ashes: okay i’m sorry!  
ashes: its not really over harry potter  
ashes: i got nervous  
me: okay so what’s wrong  
ashes: i had a nightmare  
ashes: and i cant sleep  
ashes: can i come over?

Gray can’t help the tiny smile that shows up on his face at the messages, but he tries to to tamp it down and remain angry. No weakness in the face of Natsu.

me: u fucking firedork  
me: of course u can come over

Absolute weakness in the face of Natsu.

ashes: good i’m outside  
ashes: let me in

Gray groans and tosses his phone on to the pillow. His boyfriend is the worst. He forces himself to stand and lets his eyes adjust to the darkness, his tv having shut off automatically long after he was already asleep. He stumbles to the front door and unlocks it, then opens it to reveal Natsu on the other side, dressed in his pajamas.

“Hi,” He says, sounding sheepish, and Gray steps to the side to let him in.

“What were you going to do if I hadnt woken up?” Gray asks quietly as they make their way back to his room. He turns on the tv once the door shuts behind him, lighting the room up with the Netflix logo.

“Come in through the window,” Natsu says, as if it were obvious. “Or as I like to call it, the Natsu Door,” He drops on to Gray’s bed and immediately burrows under the covers, wrapping them around him tightly. Gray sighs and joins him, forcefully tugging some of the blankets away so he can get his fair share as well. It’s silent for a few seconds while Gray turns on Bobs Burgers for them to watch, and then the blankets rustle. He turns to the side and gets attacked by Natsu as he clings to him, his arms wrapped tightly around his waist and his head laying on Gray’s chest. Its not rare that he shows affection like this, they’re always touching in some way or the other, but it’s rare that he’s so desperate for it.

“Hey,” Gray sets the remote on the table and sinks down so they’re lying on the bed, pulling the covers up until they reach Natsu’s chin. “It’s okay. It was just a dream,” He slides his hand into Natsu’s hair and pets him slowly, an attempt at soothing him that’s always worked before. It’s no different now, Natsu finally relaxing against him and breathing out a deep, relieved sigh.

“That bad, huh?” He asks, wrapping his other arm around Natsu despite the uncomfortableness that the position brings him.

“That bad,” Natsu answers in a quiet voice, and it’s so unlike him that Gray gets a bit worried.

“Wanna talk about it?” He asks, running his fingers up and down Natsu’s arm with a feather light touch.

“You died,” Natsu replies, and he doesn’t say anymore so Gray is pretty sure it’s all he’ll get.

“But Im not,” He shakes Natsu’s shoulder gently, making him look up at him. “I’m right here, alright? I’m not going anywhere, you can’t get rid of me that easy. You’re stuck with me,” He kisses Natsu on the forehead, and Natsu pouts then shoves his face into Gray’s neck, breathing soft and slow.

“I promise. I’ll be with you, always,” It’s a promise he intends to keep.

**  
**

“Hey,” Natsu kicks his leg gently, distracting Gray and making him look up from his notebook.

“We haven’t fought in a while,” Natsu comments, casually, and Gray rolls his eyes and slugs him in the stomach, but not as hard as he could. Natsu laughs and bats his hand away.

“It was just a comment. I wasn’t asking to fight you,” He says, but he kicks Gray in the ankle anyways. Gray stabs the eraser part of his pencil into Natsu’s ribs, making him keel over slightly. Gray grins and pulls the pencil away, erasing a part of his drawing that he didn’t quite like.

“Anyways. I didnt want to fight with you, freak. I got something to tell you,” He smacks the back of Gray’s head but Gray doesn’t react, just scowls and reaches up to fix his hair.

“So spit it out, flame brain. Tell me what you want,” He leans against Natsu, shutting his sketchbook and setting it aside with his pencil resting on top of it.

“The anniversary of Igneels death is coming up,” Natsu says, quickly, but Gray understands him anyway. He leans heavier against Natsu and wraps his arm around his waist tightly.

“Okay,” He says quietly, and Natsu rests his head on his shoulder.

“I just wanted to let you know. In case I disappear for a few days,” Natsu tacks on, and Gray nods carefully. It’s not just the day Igneel died, it’s the day Natsu lost all of his childhood innocence, the day he had to go grow up too fast, the day he had to kill someone just to stay alive. The day he became leader of a gang he never wanted. He gets it. He’d disappear too.

“I wont look for you. Just make sure you let me know you’re safe,” He kisses the top of Natsu’s head and feels his boyfriend nod against his lips.

“Always.”

**  
**

He hasn’t seen Natsu in three days. He’s not worried, not really, but he misses him. He gets a text every night, letting him know that Natsu is safe, but he never gets a response when he tries to talk. He tries not to feel angry about it, because he knows just what Natsu is dealing with, exactly what he’s going through. The memories he has to deal with, all by himself. He doesn’t want to lose him to the darkness, so he tries not to be mad, because he knows Natsu will come back to him.

“Have you talked to Natsu?” Lucy asks, drumming her blunt nails against the counter, and Gray jerks out of his thoughts.

“Talked is an understatement,” He says, carefully. Lucy doesn’t know what happened. It’s not his secret to tell. “He’s going through some shit but he’s fine. He texts me once every night, at least.”

“Something weird is going on with him,” Lucy spins around on the stool sitting in front of the counter to face him. “Don’t you think?”

“Yeah, I guess so,” He shrugs and leans against the counter, his hip pressing in to the granite. “He seems a bit off sometimes. But I think if something was truly wrong with him, he’d talk to us. Don’t you?” He reaches out and kicks Lucy’s leg gently. She sighs and leans back against the counter, her head tipping back to rest against the register.

“I hope so,” She says, quietly, and Gray lets her lose herself to her thoughts. He’s really gotta get on Natsu’s ass about telling her. He told him when they barely knew each other, and he should tell his sister. He knows that Natsu is scared, that his opinion doesn’t mean nearly as much as Lucy’s does. If he had rejected Natsu when he told him his truth, if he had simply shut him down as a monster. It wouldn’t hurt Natsu nearly as much as it would have if Lucy had done the same. It’s not his secret to tell, he repeats to himself. He doesn’t get to spill Natsu’s truths, he doesn’t get to drag Lucy into it. So he won’t. He checks the clock and sees that he was supposed to clock out five minutes ago.

“Hey,” He drops his hand on to Lucy’s shoulder. “I gotta clock out. Levy will be here in about thirty minutes, you gonna be okay by yourself?” He asks. She smiles up at him and nods.

“Yeah,” She answers, reaching her hand up and curling her fingers around Gray’s wrist. “Go home, try to talk to Natsu,” She pats his wrist and then let’s go. Gray reaches around her to get to the computer and clock out, then walks in the back to grab his sketchbook.

“See ya tomorrow, Luce,” He ruffles her hair and she swats at him, then waves as he walks out. It’s finally turning into winter, and the air outside is brisk and chilly. Winter is the rush season for them, and he’ll probably have to take on longer shifts more often, but it’s not quite cold enough for him to have to worry about yet. Still, he can’t help but revel in the coldness as he walks home. Some people rely on the heat like cold blooded lizards, and while Gray doesnt shy away from it, he feels more at home in the cold. Happier in it. He takes his time on his walk home, his hands shoved in his pocket and his sketchbook tucked under his arm.

“So you’re the little fag that’s distracting our leader, aye?” He hears from behind him. He freezes, but doesn’t turn around. He knows that voice.

“Excuse me?” He asks, voice cold, and the guy scoffs.

“Are you deaf as well as stupid? You heard me,” The guy snarls. Gray listens carefully. He can hear it, the shoe scuffing across the sidewalk, the slight ding as a pebble goes skidding across the concrete. The guys fast, but he’s faster. He dodges to the side and spins, interlocking his fingers and slamming his fist in the middle of the guys back, sending him careening to the ground. His sketchbook makes a thud when it falls to the ground, and he leans down to pick it up.

“Rusty, right?” He asks, kneeling down. The guy looks up at him and wheezes. Gray plucks the sunglasses off his face and throws them down the sidewalk, the glass shattering on impact. “My mom was a war veteran and a cop. I’ve spent my entire life fighting my little brother and big sister, and for the past four months, I’ve been fighting Natsu. Who isn’t your boss. I’m not gonna be so easy to take down,” He stands up and kicks the guy in the stomach for good measure. He’s not a sadist, he’s running on pure adrenaline alone. He wants to get out of here and get the fuck home. He should be scared but he’s not, he thinks as his feet pound across the sidewalk while he runs. The cold air is burning his lungs and his side is aching. But he’s so close he can see his apartment building, if he could just make it a little further.

“I don’t think so, kid,” A guy steps out of the shadows and Gray skids to a halt, his chest heaving and his body aching. This guy is a lot bigger than Rusty, with wild blonde hair like a lions mane and tattoos covering his arms. The bigger they are, the harder they fall. Gray forms a fist and punches the guy directly in the stomach. He bends over and growls, and Gray takes the moment to run. He doesn’t get far before there’s a hand around his wrist tugging him back, and when he turns around to fight his capturer, he gets a fist to the face.

“Is that all you got?” He asks, ripping his hand out of the guys hold. He spits blood out on to the sidewalk and wipes the back of his hand across his mouth. “My little brother hits harder than that,” He shouldn’t be taunting these guys. He should be running as fast as he possibly can, to get away. And yet he stands his ground.

“You’re more trouble than you’re worth,” The guy cackles, and punches Gray in the ear. He falls, clinging to the right side of his head as the world around him rings. “Sleep, kid,” Is the last thing he hears before his head hits the pavement and he passes out.

**  
**

He wakes up shaking and shivering. He’s not cold. He’s never cold. It doesn’t affect him, never. But wherever he is, he’s shaking, so he must be cold. His head is pounding and his vision is blurry but his memories are in tact. Natsu’s fucking gang has kidnapped him. Dammit. He tugs harshly on his wrists but they’re both shackled above his head, holding his body just inches off the ground in a way that makes his shoulders and arms ache. He twist the chain in his hands and pulls, lifting himself up slightly so there’s less of a strain against the rest of his body. He can only keep it up for a few seconds and then he falls, his body jerking harshly.

“Dammit!” He screams out. The adrenaline that kept him running before is gone, leaving him jittery and in pain. In fear. That’s why he’s shaking, he realizes. He’s shirtless, there’s blood cooling on the side of his face and matted in his hair. His wrists are shackled and his body is hanging, completely defenseless. He has no clue where he is, no clue how he got here, and no clue how to get help. He’s fucking terrified.

“Hey!” He screams out, shaking his body slightly so his chains jingle. “I’m fucking awake, assholes! Someone better explain to me whats happening!” The door clicks and footsteps, loud and clanking, enter the room. He can hear Ur’s voice in the back of his mind. Never let them know you’re afraid.

“Well, look at that. You’re awake,” Someone steps in front of him, the light from a dingy light bulb hanging in the ceiling just barely illuminating him. “You’re quite handsome, it’s no wonder our dear Salamander has chosen you to be his plaything,” The guy is kind of old, honestly. He has a long gray beard, matched with long gray hair, and an eyepatch covering one eye. Gray spits on him. He tsks and wipes it away.

“Now now, my boy. That’s no way to treat your host, now is it?”

“Just what the fuck is happening here, you sadistic freak?” Gray hoists himself up again, his shoulders and wrists burning in protest from having to have supported his whole weight for such a long time. The old man watches with a smile on his face as Gray holds himself up and drops back down again.

“Why, to attract Natsu, of course. A gang needs a leader, doesn’t it? And you make such a good hostage,” He pokes his finger into Gray’s side, and Gray kicks out wildly in an attempt to hit him. The man does nothing but grab Gray’s leg and stop him, then drop it. “Then again. I suppose my underlings can have some fun with you while we wait. How long do you think it’ll take Natsu to realize you’re gone, I wonder. I bet he’ll realize by the end of the day, but some of my gang members are betting it’ll take a week at the least. I say we have some faith in our leader,” He looks at Gray, as though daring him to place a bet, then shakes his head and turns around. “I’ll be back soon, Gray Fullbuster,” He waves as he leaves, and Gray screams at the closed door. He needs to fucking think, but blind panic and pain and anger are clouding his mind, and he’s trying his hardest not to just cry. He shakes his head and turns it slightly so he can wipe his eyes off on his shoulder. He can do this, dammit. He knows Natsu will come for him. He just has to wait. It’s only a couple of minutes before the door opens again. His shoulders and wrists are screaming, and he barely has the energy to hold himself up anymore. They put him in the perfect position to strain himself.

“Well, aren’t you pretty?” It’s a girls voice this time, and when Gray lifts his head he sees a girl with shoulder length green hair, messy and swept back. She looks like she’s wearing leather, and she’s twirling a knife in her hand. Cold fear washes over his spine like ice and his entire body is wracked by shivers.

“You hurt me and I swear to god once Natsu comes for me, you’re the first one Im gonna kill,” He snarls, jerking harshly on his chains and only succeeding in hurting his wrists more.

“Oh, and feisty too. I cant wait to carve that attitude out of you,” She purrs, her face darkening with an evil grin, and the next thing to come from his mouth is a scream as she slices into his hip.

**  
**

He doesn’t really know much besides pain. He doesn’t know how much time has passed. He’s been slipping in and out of consciousness, blackness swallowing him up and then disappearing with the sharpness of someone’s knife or the bluntness of someone’s fist. He doesn’t know how many people come in and out, laughing delightfully as they make him bleed, but he does know the green haired demon, Kyôka, is the one who comes the most.

“You think Natsu will like how much we’ve decorated his little present?” She asks, dragging the cold, sharp tip of her knife through a patch of blood. He knows he has a lot of injuries, the worst of it at his hip, where Kyôka had started the torture. He’s got blood covering his body, from various face wounds and knife marks. He doesn’t know how many of them will scar but he knows for a fact the one at his hip will. He knows he’s shivering. He knows he’s scared and crying, no matter how much he tried to stop himself. He can’t speak, his throat wrecked and torn from his screams.

“Well?” Kyôka asks, grabbing his hair and ripping his head back. He goes with nothing more than a grunt, his eyes closed as he feels the press of a blade against his throat. “I asked you a question, you pathetic human,” she digs the blade into his throat and he can just feel the skin splitting slowly, feel the spots of blood welling up as they cool in the air. He hears a loud crash down the hallway and he smiles, his teeth slick with blood.

“I think,” He pants, his voice raw. It hurts to talk. “That it’s time for you to see what a real dragon can do.”

It doesn’t take long. There’s various yelling that starts to get closer to the room Gray is in, and then he can hear him.

“Salamander!” Someone screams, and then there’s a loud thump.

“Where is he?!” Natsu’s voice comes with a hot wave of relief, adrenaline kicking in and washing away some of his pain. His entire body is burning, white hot fury slamming into him so fast it makes him dizzy.

“I don’t know! What the fuck, how is that flame so hot?!” He hears the same guys voice, now choked with tears and pain.

“Cool lighter, isn’t it?” Natsu’s voice sounds gleeful, like he’s smiling. “Friend of mine tricked it out for me. It’s supposed to burn as hot as a chemical fire. Wanna find out how hot that is?” There’s a scream, and the sound of someone hitting the wall.

“I’ll take that as a no, then. Now tell me where the fuck my boyfriend is!” Natsu’s voice isn’t gleeful anymore. It’s hard, demanding. Not a voice you say no to.

“Down the hall! First door on the right!” He hears, and then footsteps pounding.

“Natsu!” He screams. The relief he felt at hearing his boyfriends voice is nothing compared to what he’s feeling now as the door opens and Natsu walks in. He’s got blood staining his clothes and his face but Gray is pretty sure none of it is his.

“Not another step!” Kyôka screams, her knife pressing against Gray’s throat again. Natsu stops, looking murderous. His lighter is hand, burning.

“Come near him and I’ll slit his throat,” She warns.

“Kyôka,” Natsu greets, amicably, and snaps his lighter closed. His eyes haven’t left Gray’s. “I knew you were desperate but this is just pathetic,” He scoffs.

“Come now. You’re not happy with your present?” She drags the blade across his neck, adding just enough pressure to cut a bit. She rests the tip against his jugular.

“Kyôka,” Natsu’s voice is dangerously calm. “You let him go right now and I’ll think about letting you leave with your life.”

“You destroyed your own gang, Salamander!” She screams at him. “You killed our leader and refused to take responsibility for it. This is your own doing!” She sounds hysterical. Her focus completely devoted to Natsu, off of Gray. He tangles his hands in the chains, slowly so he doesn’t make a noise, and in one swift movement pulls himself up and spins. He kicks her directly in the chest and she goes flying, her knife clattering to the ground. He lets his body drop, the pain slamming into him as the chains pull at his flesh and bones, the last of his energy spent just from that one move.

“Took you long enough,” He breathes out. Black is clouding the edges of his vision, and the last thing he sees is Natsu rushing for him.

**  
**

He doesn’t know how long he’s asleep for, but he knows that he’s getting really tired of not knowing anything. He wakes up to talking, and the beeping of machines that indicate he’s in a hospital. The lights are bright even behind his closed eyelids, so he doesn’t bother to open them yet. He just listens.

“I cant believe someone would hurt my child like this,” That’s Gramps voice, Gray would know it in a heartbeat. It makes him happy that his boss would bother to come see him in the hospital. “They’ll pay for this.”

“Oh yeah, old man?” Laxus? Gramps he can understand but Laxus coming to visit him feels like a dream. “What are you gonna do? Lecture them to death?” There a thump, and then Laxus groans in pain. Gray finally cracks his eyes open.

“Serves you right, Lax,” His voice is rough and his throat is dry. The room falls silent, and it feels like even the beeping of the machines goes quiet.

“Gray!” Ultear appears in his vision, the sound of a chair scraping across the ground as Lyon joins her.

“You’re awake!” The rest of the group gathers around him. Gramps and Laxus are here, as well and Lucy and Freed. Ultear starts fussing over him, adjusting his blankets and petting his hair.

“Is there anything you’d like?” Freed chimes in, ever the voice of reason.

“I’ll go get the doctor,” Lucy pats his thigh through the blanket and he winces.

“Can I get some water?” He asks. Ultear rushes to get him some, pouring some into a cup from a large pitcher. She hands it to him and then helps him sit up, which he does so with a gasp of pain. He drinks the water slowly, the rush of cold water feeling pleasant against his dry and raw throat. He feels or settle in his stomach, and he wonders when the last time he ate was. Breakfast before he went into work, but he doesn’t know how long ago that was. He doesn’t feel hungry though.

“Can everyone stop staring at me?” He asks when he’s done.

“I’m sorry, my boy,” Gramps sighs softly. When he moves out the way, Gray can see Juvia sleeping in a chair. The sight makes him smile. Of course she’d be here.

“We’re just worried about you,” He adds on, taking the seat next to Juvia. Laxus stands behind him and Freed stands next to Laxus. Gray looks around the room more slowly this time.

“Where’s Natsu?” He asks. The room goes quiet again and everyone looks away.

“He won’t come in,” Ultear answers quietly, her hand resting in his hair. “The doctor had to have some security guards drag him out of the room when he first came in, and since he got taken out he won’t come back in. He’s been in the waiting room for two days. He won’t eat or sleep or shower. It’s pathetic,” She smiles softly at him.

“I’ve been asleep for two days?” Gray asks, trying to sit up more fully but giving up when pain races through his veins.

“I’ll go get him,” Laxus says gruffly. He pats Gramps on the head and then leaves, shutting the door quietly behind him.

“How are you feeling?” Freed asks, taking Laxus’ spot directly behind Gramps.

“In pain,” Gray answers. His head whips up at a crash from outside the door.

“Laxus!” Natsu screams and Gray can’t help but smile. “Let go of me you big brute!”

“Get the fuck in there,” Laxus opens the door and throws Natsu inside. He lands in a heap on the floor. He looks like a mess. There’s a spot of dried blood on his cheek, and even more dirt covering his face. His hair is greasy and limp, covering his forehead and hanging into his eyes, which are rounded with dark purple bags. His usually pristine scarf is dirty and stained with blood.

“Gray,” He whispers, pushing himself up. He sways a bit, then takes a shaky step towards the bed.

“Get out,” Lyon demands of the crowd. He leans down to pick up Juvia, who’s rubbing her eyes with a sleepy look on her face. Everyone follows after him, looking back at the two of them as they go. Gramps is the last one out, and he smiles at Gray before shutting the door behind himself.

“You’re okay,” Natsu breathes, dropping into the closest chair to his bed. Gray raises his hand and reaches out to him, and Natsu grabs it and laces their fingers together.

“I told you. You can’t get rid of me this easily,” Gray croaks out. Natsu drops his head and rests it on their joined hands.

“This is my fault,” His voice is choked with tears and Gray’s heart plummets into his stomach. “I was supposed to protect you, dammit,” He whimpers. Gray tugs on their hands and when Natsu looks up, he has tears running down his cheek.

“C’mere,” He demands. Natsu hesitates but stands up, then carefully climbs into bed next to him. Gray scoots over, and as soon as Natsu lays down, he curls into his boyfriend. He wraps his arm around Natsu’s waist and hides his head against his warm chest.

“Missed you,” He slips his hand under Natsu’s shirt and rests it on his skin, which feels like fire under his touch. If he was asleep for two days, and he had to have been gone for at least a day, then it’s been almost a week since he last saw Natsu. The thought makes his heart ache.

“Missed you too, Ice Princess,” Natsu replies, slipping his hand into Gray’s hair and playing with it gently. This is the most relaxed Gray has been since this whole fiasco started. When everything calms down he knows he’ll freak out, but right now he’s content to sit in Natsu’s arms, his warmth calming him.

“Mr. Fullbuster,” The door clicks open and a man walks in, wearing a white lab coat and smiling pleasantly. Gray comes out of his hiding place and looks up at the doctor, who’s smile only grows when he sees the way they’re sitting. He has a shock of blue hair and a strange scar crossing over his eye.

“My name is Doctor Fernandes, but you can call me Jellal. How are you feeling today?” He grabs the clipboard hanging at the end of the bed and flips through it, doing his doctory stuff.

“I’m fine, in a lot of pain though,” He answers. That name. It sounds familiar but he can’t place from where. Natsu helps him sit up so he can talk to Jellal properly.

“I’ll adjust your pain meds,” Jellal responds, writing something down on his clipboard. “Do you know where you are?” He asks.

“The hospital.”

“Do you know the names of your brother and sister?”

“Lyon and Ultear.”

“Are you aware of what happened to you?”

“I got kidnapped.”

He answers the doctors questions for the next five minutes, Natsu sitting in silence and watching them.

“Alright, everything seems to be in order,” He puts the clipboard back and slides his pen into his coat pocket. “I’ll check back in in a few hours, and I’ll have nurse Meldy come in to give you a higher dose of pain meds,” He smiles at them and then turns to leave, but the door crashes open before he can.

“Gray!” Erza runs into the room, skidding across the floor and slamming directly into the doctor.

“Oh god, Erza,” Gray sighs and slaps his hand to his forehead.

“I’m sorry, I tried to stop her!” Lucy’s voice rings out, and Gray shakes his head slowly.

“Oh, doctor, I am so sorry,” Erza stands and drags the doctor with her, who’s staring at her with a star struck expression on his face.

“Erza?” Jellal asks, his tone wondrous.

“Jellal!” Erza exclaims. She’s quick to wrap Jellal in a hug, and it finally clicks.

“Oh! He’s that Jellal!” Gray snaps his fingers and Natsu looks at him questioningly.

“Erza’s version of the one who got away,” Gray whispers to him, leaning heavily against his side as a wave of exhaustion floods over him. “Don’t know the full story, but Erza has a really bad childhood and he helped her through it. Up and disappeared one day, talking about stoning for his sins and taking responsibility or something, I don’t know. Guess he ended up here.”

“Oh, Gray!” Erza let’s go of Jellal and walks over to his bed side. “How are you? Are you okay? Tell me who did this, I’ll kill them,” She grabs his hand and squeezes harshly, and Gray winces.

“Erza I’m fine, really,” He looks up at her and smiles. “I just wanna sleep. Go catch up with your boyfriend,” He tugs his hand out of hers gently, and she blushes but nods.

“I’ll be here when you wake up,” She promises.

“Go. I’ll take care of him,” Natsu interjects. Erza stares hard at him and Natsu shrinks under the glare.

“You get some rest too. And take a shower. You stink,” She orders.

“Yes ma’am,” Natsu nods quickly, his head bouncing up and down.

“Er,” Jellal clears his throat and straightens out his coat, but his entire face is red. The sight makes Gray smirk, even as his head drops to Natsu’s shoulder and his eyes close. “The exhaustion is a side effect of the medicine, and all the strain your body has been put under. You should be fine to rest for a while, but I’ll be back in a few hours to check on you and make sure that everything is alright. Get some rest,” Jellal informs him. Gray nods but doesn’t bother to open his eyes, and he hears two sets of footsteps leave the room, then the soft click of the door closing. It’s quiet, and then Natsu starts to sing.

“I just don’t know what to do,” He sings quietly, his hand coming up to run through Gray’s hair. “Im too afraid to love you. It’s heaven on earth, in his embrace. His gentle touch, and smiling face,” Gray doesn’t know the song but still, Natsu’s voice does a better job of reassuring him than any doctors words could ever do. “I just don’t know what to do. I’m too afraid, to love you. All those sleepless nights, and all those wasted days. I wish loneliness would leave, but I think it’s here to stay,” His voice is soft and gentle, in tune with the beating of his heart and drowning out the beeping of the machines. He’s so tired and Natsu is so warm, his voice so sweet, that he falls asleep easily.

**  
**

“Like to release him come later tonight,” Jellal’s voice rouses him from sleep, and Gray shifts around so that he’s no longer curled against something warm. When he opens his eyes he sees Jellal standing by the bed, and sees that Natsu was the one he was pressed against.

“Wha’s happenin?” He slurs out, reaching up to rub his eyes. His head feels a bit fuzzy, and he knows what’s happening but also, not really.

“Welcome to the world of the living, Gray,” Jellal smiles at him. He has a touch of red lipstick on his cheek, the color that belongs to Erza. Gray reaches up to wipe it off and Jellal chuckles, gently moving his hand away. Natsu grabs his hand and laces their fingers together, causing Gray to turn towards him.

“Oh,” He mumbles. His tongue feels heavy in his mouth. “You’re warm. Like a dragon. Hello, dragon,” He pats Natsu on the top of his head with their linked hands and Natsu laughs, pulling them back down to rest in their lap.

“‘S good. I’m cold,” He moves closer to Natsu and burrows into him, using his free hand to grab the scratchy blanket and pulling it up around him.

“You don’t get cold, Gray,” Natsu reminds him, but Gray just shrugs.

“It’s just the medicine,” Jellal reassures him. “He’ll have shivers and shakes and the likes. He’s not actually cold but because he’s shivering he thinks he is. He’ll be a little out of it and a bit loopy for a while, but that should wear off after a few hours. At least he won’t hurt anymore,” He flips through the clipboard a few more times and then sets it back to wherever the hell he got it from. He’s right. He doesn’t feel cold, but his entire body is shaking and it’s a struggle to keep his teeth from chattering, but there’s no pain. It’s like his whole body has been numbed, including his brain.

“Thank you, blue man,” Gray slurs, and Jellal looks like he’s trying really hard not to laugh.

“I’ve sent all your friends home to rest and shower, and get something to eat. You should do the same, Natsu. Erza can come stay with him while you’re gone,” Jellal informs him.

“He’s my dragon,” Gray huffs, wrapping his arms tightly around Natsu’s waist. He’s cold. He won’t let anyone take his dragon away from him.

“He sure is,” Jellal agrees, one hundred percent seriously.

“I’ll just go take a shower in the bathroom really quickly, Princess. I’ll be back, okay?” Natsu presses a kiss to his forehead and stands up, carefully extracting himself from Gray’s arms. Gray whines but lets him go. He feels like this is something important, but he doesn’t really know why.

“And when you’re done with that, go get some food. I’ll have Erza come and stay with him,” Jellal orders. Natsu nods and salutes him, and Jellal walks out while Natsu walks into the bathroom that’s connected to the room. He hears a shower turning on and then footsteps, then Erza shows up at the end of his bed.

“Erzy!” Gray exclaims, throwing his hands up. “Where have you been?! I missed you!” He motions towards himself and Erza chuckles but joins him on the bed.

“You sound like Millianna,” She tells him, leaning against him and dropping her head to rest on his shoulder. Gray scrunches his face up as he thinks, trying to remember who Millianna is.

“Oh! The crazy cat lady who tried to steal Carla away from Wendy?” He asks, and Erza chuckles and nods.

“Exactly that one,” She pats him on the chest, as if to say job well done. The covers slip down as they move around to get comfortable, and Gray picks at the white bandages covering his chest and stomach and hips and wrists.

“Huh,” He taps his chest and Erza grabs his hand, pulling it away from the bandages. “When did these get here?” He tries to pull his hand out of Erza’s to keep picking at them, but she wouldn’t let go. The bandages are everywhere, splotched with red. The worst part is at his hip, and if he twists his body in just the wrong way, he can feel a blunt hint of pain, like a faint memory of a pain that should be there but isn’t.

“They’ve been here since you were admitted two days ago, Gray,” Erza says quietly. Her tone has suddenly become very serious, so Gray does his best to pay attention, although it’s a bit hard. “We were so worried about you. You were missing for over a day, Natsu found your sketchbook on the ground when he was on the way to your house. He knew something was wrong so he contacted everyone and we went looking for you. Gajeel and Natsu found their place. Gajeel said he’s never seen Natsu that angry in his life, and that the place looked like a blood bath when they left,” Erza shivers next to him. “He was terrifying. It took three police officers to take you out of his arms, and four of them to make him leave the room,” She wipes at her eyes. “We were so scared,” She whispers.

“‘S okay,” He pats her cheek gently and she laughs. “I’m right here. Alive and kicking,” He kicks his legs up and down to prove his point and she laughs a bit harder.

“Wrong retelling,” Natsu enters the room, a towel wrapped around his neck and his scarf in hand. “It was four officers and Ultear that had to drag me away from him.”

“Ultear is a police officer,” Erza points out, and Gray nods next to her.

“But she wasnt in uniform,” Natsu tells them, and Erza sighs but concedes her point. Natsu grabs the towel off his neck and rubs it over his hair, before dropping it into an empty chair and sitting on the bed, the other side of Erza.

“Anyways, I knew she was an officer. That’s why I refused to talk to anyone but her,” He lays down next to Gray, wrapping his arm around his waist.

“Aren’t you supposed to be getting something to eat?” Erza gives him a pointed look, and Gray looks between the two of them with confusion evident on his face.

“He needs to know,” Natsu hisses out.

“Fine,” Erza huff and turns her head away from them.

“I told Ultear everything. About killing the man who killed my father and the gang, the drugs and the money and everything,” Natsu says, carefully. Gray feels panic flood through his veins.

“What?” He flips around to stare at Natsu and ignores the pain glaring in his hip. “Are you going to jail?”

“No,” He shakes his head slowly. “I got immunity from the murder based on the stand your ground law, and I refused to confess about the gang and my father unless I got immunity from that as well, but Ultear said that I would basically be on probation. I have to follow the laws exactly, do a few hours of community service a week, get a job, and I have a curfew now. So I can’t spend the night at your house anymore,” He rubs his fingers up and down Gray’s chest, and he relaxes just a bit. “But they’ve arrested Kyôka and Hades, and Rusty and Zancrow, and everyone else in the gang. They’re going to jail for a long time,” He reassures him. Gray nods slowly.

“Okay,” He croaks out. He feels Erza’s hand in his hair and turns to look at her.

“I’ll go get the two of you some food,” She says quietly. She touches the back of his neck and then stands up, smiling at them even as she leaves.

“I’m sorry that I let this happen,” Natsu says, silently, and Gray turns away from the door to stare at his boyfriend.

“Not your fault. ‘S all the bad guys fault. They’re real mean,” Gray assures him, patting Natsu’s chest softly. Natsu chuckles and grabs his hand, bringing it up to his mouth to kiss his knuckles.

“You’re real drugged up, aren’t you, babe?” Natsu asks, and Gray grins.

“Fuzzy,” He replies, as if that’s an answer. Natsu seems to take it as one at least.

“Still feeling sleepy?” He runs his hand down Gray’s face, resting it on the side of his neck. Gray shrugs. He feels tired, but not in the way that he wants to fall asleep. He just wants to lay there and not move, but he doesn’t know how to properly articulate his thoughts, so he just shrugs again and says, “Wide awake.”

“Okay,” Natsu leans down and kisses his forehead, then his nose, then his cheek, then his mouth.

“Such a cheeseball,” Gray grumbles, pushing Natsu’s face away.

“Your cheeseball,” Natsu says, kissing the palm of his hand.

**  
**

He gets discharged later that night, but he has a follow up appointment in two weeks with Jellal to make sure everything is healing properly. They gave him a steroid shot before he left, to help deal with the swelling and infections, and he feels like he can still feel the fire flowing through his veins. Zero out of ten, he’d rather get an infection than another shot like that. His right wrist is fractured but not broken, meaning he isn’t allowed to draw until it heals. He has stitches in his hip, sealing up the X shaped wound that Kyôka left in her wake, and more stitches crossing over the gash in his forehead from when he fell and hit his head. His entire body looks like a finger painting gone wrong, with various cuts and bruises of different colors and shapes crossing over his entire body. He has to wear the bandages for a few more days to make sure nothing gets infected, and he’s not allowed to lift anything heavy for at least a month due to the strain that had been put on his shoulders and the healing process that they have to go through. Basically he’s loaded down with different rules and regulations that he has to follow in order to heal properly, as well as the physical and mental scars that he has left over. He tries to get Lyon and Ultear to let him sleep over Natsu’s but they outright refuse, dropping him into his bed and demanding he stay there or else.

“It’s almost curfew for me,” Natsu says, staring at his phones which reads ten forty six. His curfew is eleven pm, meaning if he wants to make it he needs to leave in the next four minutes.

“Don’t want you to go,” Gray whines, attaching himself to Natsu like a koala. He’s still a little fucked up on the pain pills Jellal had given him, with explicit instructions to only take them if the pain was so bad he couldn’t move or perform daily functions. He still felt that way when the medicine from the hospital wore off, achy and his body screaming in pain, so he took one as soon as he got home.

“I know,” Natsu sighs and kisses his forehead before extracting himself from Gray’s tight hold. “But I need to, okay?” He runs his hand through Gray’s hair with a fond smile. “Get some sleep, ice head. I’ll be back before you know,” He runs his fingers over the bandage covering the stitches on his forehead and then walks out of the room, leaving Gray pouting and whining in his wake. He knows that he needs to do what Natsu says but it’s not fair. He knows that, while Natsu never participated in the gangs activities, he’s being punished for knowing all about them and never telling anyone. He knows why this is happening, but he doesn’t like it, and he’s too fucked up on drugs to really care about the fact that what happened was better than Natsu going to jail. He curls around his pillow and tells Ultear to fuck off when she comes in and tries to make him eat something before he goes to bed. He curls the blanket over his shoulders and turns his tv as loud as it can go without hurting his ears, and falls asleep like a petulant child.

**  
**

He has a nightmare. He knows it’s a nightmare, it’s not real, but it doesn’t stop him from having it. He’s back in that godforsaken basement, but it’s not Kyôka torturing him. It’s Natsu. He laughs and screams and smiles and stabs him over and over, leaving him with the phantom pain of not real wounds when he wakes up crying. He stuffs his shaking fingers into his hair and ignores the fact that the pain pills have worn off, leaving him shaky and weak. He sucks in gasps of breath that fill his too tight chest, over and over again until he feels strong enough to reach for his phone and call Natsu.

“Hey,” Natsu grumbles, sounding half asleep, and Gray whimpers into the phone. “Gray? Hey, whats wrong, are you okay?” He sounds more awake this time, and Gray can hear fabric rustling in the background.

“Bad dream,” Gray manages to get out through shaky whimpers and stifled sobs.

“Okay,” Natsu soothes. “It’s okay. My curfew is gonna be up in five minutes. Just hold on for me, okay? I’ll be there soon,” Gray looks out his window and sees the sky is turning a light blue, and his cable box reads five fifty five. “Hey, Gray. Are you okay?” Natsu’s voice rings through the speakers, drawing him out of his thoughts.

“Fine,” He breathes easier now, knowing Natsu is on the other end of the phone, taking care of him, watching out for him, and he spends the next few minutes just regaining his breath. “I’m fine. You don’t have to come,” He lays back in bed slowly, pulling the covers up to his chest.

“No. I’m coming,” Gray can hear Natsu’s bed creak as he stands, and the clock now reads five fifty nine, which means Natsu is about to leave. “I’m gonna hang up but Ill be there in five minutes. I’ll see you soon, okay?” He refuses to hang up until Gray replies to him and assures him he can wait five minutes for Natsu to get here. He gets up to unlock the door and then sits next to it, waiting for Natsu to walk through it. He dozes off a bit, almost passing out before the door opens and Natsu walks in. He shuts the door gently and locks it, then sits down next to Gray. He lets Gray rest his head on his shoulder and wraps his arm around Gray’s neck.

“I have a bad dream and come to you, you have a bad dream and I still come to you,” He teases, and Gray shoves his fingers into Natsu’s side.

“I told you that you didn’t have to come,” He points out. “You brought this upon yourself,” He adds. Natsu laughs and stands up, reaching down and hauling Gray with him.

“Let’s go back to bed,” He laces their fingers together and drags Gray back to his room, pushing him gently to rest on the bed. He sets up the TV to play the same show Gray watches every night when he goes to bed, then kicks off his shoes and undresses down to his boxers. He climbs in next to Gray and curls around him, wrapping his arms around Gray’s waist and pulling him so they’re pressed together, Gray’s back to Natsu’s chest.

“Thank you,” Gray whispers, and Natsu kisses the back of his head.

“Any time, Snowflake,” He promises, and Gray believes him.

**  
**

“If you don’t stop hogging the damn covers,” Gray growls, trying to drag the covers away from Natsu and wrap them around himself, “I’m gonna make you sleep on the floor like a dog,” He tells him.

“Id like to see you try,” Natsu grumbles back, half asleep as he tugs the covers away from Gray.

“Get the fuck out,” Gray turns around and in one swift move, rips the covers away and shoves Natsu off the bed with a harsh push. He makes a loud thump when he hits the floor, and Gray smiles as he curls the covers around him and snuggles into the bed.

“Ice prick,” Natsu grumbles, standing up from the floor and rubbing his head.

“Fire breath,” Gray replies.

“Perverted popsicle.”

“Spineless wimp.”

“Flashing freak.”

“Shut the fuck up and get in bed before I punch you in the throat,” Gray demands, glaring at him, and Natsu huffs but climbs back into bed anyways.

“At least share, frosty,” Natsu tugs on the covers and Gray finally releases them, letting Natsu climb under them. He curls into Natsu’s chest, pressing his nose right over Natsu’s heart. He shoves his cold fingers under Natsu’s body, and laughs when he yelps.

“It’s like every part of you has been stuck in ice recently, get off me!” Natsu shoves at him, albeit gently, but Gray refuses to move. He curls even closer, tangling their legs together and wrapping his arms tightly around Natsu, who flops on the bed like a fish in an effort to dislodge him without actually hurting him. He ends up laying on his back with Gray draped across his front like an extra, cold, blanket. Natsu sighs and resigns himself to his fate, wrapping his arms around Gray’s waist and holding him there. Gray lays his head down on Natsu’s chest, his ear over his heart, and closes his eyes. When Natsu speaks he can feel the vibrations against his head and hear his voice coming from his chest.

“How’s your pain?” Natsu asks, trailing his fingers up and down his spine, over the bandages.

“Fine, right now. Dont know how long it’ll last, though,” Gray answers. His body feels a little achy, but not painful. Just sore.

“No more bad dreams?” Natsu kisses the top of his head.

“No more bad dreams,” Gray informs him, wrapping his arms around Natsu so they lay in between his back and the bed. It makes his bad wrist twinge a bit, but it’s warm and comfortable so he doesn’t bother to move it. He lays like that for a little bit, stuck in that warm, hazy space between not fully awake but not totally asleep either. He can still feel Natsu’s hand on his back, tracing shapes against the bandages, but it feels more like a dream then a reality. He doesn’t mind; he’s warm and comfortable and calm. Sleep is gripping against his consciousness but not fully dragging him down, leaving him floating in numb awareness, a pleasant place to be. He’s just about to fall asleep fully when Ultear walks in, dressed in uniform with her hair pinned up in a tight bun.

“I thought I sent you home last night,” She whisper shouts, and Gray imagines that she’s pointing at Natsu, but he doesn’t bother to open his eyes.

“Bad dream,” Natsu replies, his hand resting on Gray’s back. “He told me to stay home but I wanted to be here for him,” He shrugs, and Gray gets jostled slightly. All he does is curl tighter around Natsu, refusing to fully wake up despite the fact he’s been ripped out of his dozed state.

“How’s he doing?” He hears one of Ultears weapons on her utility belt click against the wall, and figures that she’s leaning against the door frame. With her arms crossed, because that’s who she is.

“He’s fine. He said the pain was okay, but I’ll make sure he takes another pill if it gets too bad.”

“Okay,” Ultear sounds worried and Gray can feel the heat of her gaze on the back of his head. “Just make sure he doesn’t take too many. I’m off to work, I wont be back till pretty late, okay? Lyon should be home for dinner but I don’t know about before or after that, so the house is all yours. No funny business,” She says, all serious like, and Gray grins. “Just sleeping and food. He’s gonna try to do everything himself, please don’t let him,” She raps her knuckles against the door. “Thanks, Natsu. I appreciate it. Love you guys,” She says the last bit softly, but Gray can feel Natsu go still underneath him and his heart speed up double time.

“Thanks,” He whispers. He clears his throat and tries again. “Uh, thanks, Ultear. Love you too,” he says it with this air of disbelief that makes Gray a bit worried. He hears his door click shut and finally opens his eyes, lifting his head to set his chin down on Natsu’s chest so he can look at him.

“What was that about?” He asks, tapping his finger against Natsu’s chest, and he turns bright red.

“Uh,” Natsu scrubs at the top of his head, looking nervous. “I don’t know. It’s just that, yanno. You wouldn’t be this way if you hadn’t met me, so I figured Ultear would think the same. I just didn’t think she’d even want me to be alone with you, let alone say that,” He’s avoiding eye contact with Gray, who huffs and grabs his face, forcing Natsu to look at him.

“I wouldn’t be happy if I hadn’t met you,” He says, completely sincere. Whether Natsu wants to believe it or not it’s the truth. Sure, hes a little banged up. His hands haven’t stopped shaking and his nightmare has just left him with yet another scar. But Natsu never wanted this to happen, and Gray knows it’s not his fault. He came for him, rescued him, risked going to jail all for him. They’ve known each other for over half a year and Gray has never met anyone who understood him better, who knew just how to get to him, who knew exactly which buttons to push to make him happy or mad. He’s been falling ever since he met the damn kid, and he knows with complete confidence that Natsu will be there to catch him when the time comes. He can practically taste it, the words on the tip of his tongue, but he’s not in a rush. He has the rest of his life with Natsu, he’s sure of it, so he just buries his face in Natsu’s neck and repeats, “You make me so happy,” Over and over again until Natsu laughs and pinches his side gently.

“Okay,” Natsu agrees quietly, soothing his fingers over the skin he just pinched. “I trust you.”

**  
**

They spend all day lazing around doing nothing. By the time noon rolls around, Gray has to take a pain pill. He was trying his best to hold out, but when he almost collapsed in the kitchen, Natsu forces one down his throat and leads him to the couch. Surprisingly, Natsu is a good cook, unless it comes to meatloaf. He makes sure Gray eats at least one meal and keeps it down, then joins him on the couch. They try to watch a horror movie but between the flashing lights, the blood, the screaming, and the knives they have to turn it off when Gray starts crying.

“I’m trying, dammit,” Gray says fiercely, wiping angrily at the tears on his face.

“I know,” Natsu says, in that same soft voice he’s been using all damn day, like Gray is a doll just waiting to be broken. It makes him angry. This isn’t them.

“Stop talking to me like that,” He crosses his arms over his chest and looks away. “I’m not a child, Natsu. We both know that I’m stronger than that, so stop acting like I’m some fucking damsel in distress,” He knows he’s acting like a child, contrary to what he just said, but he can’t help it. He just wants to get to be a normal dude sometimes, not someone who watched his parents get killed, not someone who killed his adoptive mother, not someone who got tortured because of his gang leader boyfriend. Just someone fucking semi normal at least.

“In case you don’t remember, you were a fucking damsel, Gray. I had to save you. Do you realize how fucked up I was after seeing you bleeding out in a basement, hung up by chains with a knife to your throat?” Natsu screams at him. “You’re not the only one with nightmares!”

“I didnt ask you to save me! I was fine by myself! I didn’t need you!” Gray yells back, jumping off the couch, but all the fight drains from him when he realizes what he’s said, when he’s seen how much his words damage Natsu.

“Wait,” He whimpers when Natsu stands up to leave. Gray clutches on to his shirt and tugs him back. “Wait, I’m sorry. I didnt mean that, I’m sorry,” He pulls and pulls until Natsu is in front of him, and then he leans down and rests his head in between Natsu’s shoulder blades. “Thank you. I’m sorry. I just want to be a normal fucking person for once,” Hes crying again, and he hates himself for it.

“It’s okay,” Natsu sighs and turns around, wrapping his arms around Gray and leading both of them to sit back on the couch. “If I never met you, you probably would be normal,” He says, bitterly. Gray laughs, but there’s no humor in it.

“I was fucked up long before you came around, Natsu,” He promises. Natsu grabs his face and tilts it so they’re looking at each other.

“What happened to your family, Gray?” He asks, all soft and gentle and no pressure, but it doesn’t make Gray angry. Just sad. He grabs Natsu’s hand and leans back against the couch.

“When I was a little kid, an escaped convict came by my house and robbed it. Then he killed my parents right in front of me,” He feels Natsu’s hand tighten in his. “I was hiding, because I was a coward. I was only a boy, I didnt know what to do. Ur found me crying on their grave after the funeral, and she took me in so that I didnt go into the system. She did the same thing with Lyon. Ultear is her real daughter,” He closes his eyes, even though it makes painful memories crash through his brain, but he doesn’t want to look at Natsu when he explains exactly why Ur died. “I begged Ur to teach me self defense. How to handle a gun, how to throw a knife, how to take care of myself in a fight, and she did. A few years after she took me in, we were walking through town one day and I heard a rumor that the same man who killed my parents was just a few towns over. So I went, and I tried to fucking fight him,” He can feel the tears falling from his eyes. “Because I was an idiot. Ur and Lyon tried to stop me but they couldn’t. So Ur followed me, and she fought the guy instead. She killed him, but she got fatally wounded. She died, because of me. Lyon told me that she took me in because she saw some sort of darkness in me. She promised me that by killing him, she killed the darkness in me. I’m not sure if she was right, but I try to be happy. For her,” He lets go of Natsu’s hand to wipe away his tears. “Anyways. That’s my story,” He opens his eyes and tries to smile, but hes suddenly so exhausted. He wants to sleep for an eternity. Natsu blindsides him with a hug, wrapping his arms around him tightly and forcefully pulling Gray against him.

“It is not your fault, Gray,” He says like it’s the one hundred percent truth.

“Yes, Natsu. It is. If I had never gone to challenge him, Ur would still be alive.”

“Do you blame me for what happened to you?” Damn him. Natsu knows just what to say.

“You know I dont,” He replies through gritted teeth. Natsu pulls back to stare at him, his eyes tracing down the mountain of bandages covering his body. He presses two fingers softly against where he knows the stitched up wound on Gray’s hip is, then presses the same fingers against the own scar on his opposite hip, finally healed over and just fading from pink to white.

“Now we match,” He says, letting his hand drop to his lap.

“Battle scars,” Gray decides on. It’s the nicest way of describing what happened to them.

“Battle scars,” Natsu agrees.

**  
**

He’s finally healed up enough to get back to work. Makarov had absolutely refused to let him go back to work in his condition, but it’s been two weeks. His wounds have all healed over and his wrist doesn’t even hurt anymore, and he’s been able to draw a bit in his downtime. He’s still supposed to be taking it easy but after a lot of begging, Gramps agreed to let him back in on what he likes to call a trial run, but Gray know that means he basically gets to sit at the counter all day and do nothing but take orders. Whatever, it works for him.

“You sure you’re ready?” Ultears asks, adjusting his collar for the tenth time. Gray lets her because she’s worried.

“Ultear, if it’s too much, I promise Ill come back home. Okay?” He says, just to make her feel more comfortable. She tsks but adjusts his collar one more time.

“Okay, if you say so. Love you, baby bear,” She leans up to kiss his cheek and Gray pats her back.

“I gotta go, Tea. I love you too,” He kisses the top of her head and she finally lets go of him. He grabs his bag off the table and slips on his shoes, then runs out the door. He’s usually glad the coffee shop is close enough for him to walk to, but he knows today it won’t be good for him, so he climbs into his car and makes the short drive. He parks in the back and then walks through the front door to find the store empty.

“Uh, hello?” He calls out, but there’s no response. He walks cautiously into the back and there’s still nobody.

“Quit playing hide and seek, you’re not children!” He yells, peeking around the shelves of inventory. He checks in the fridge and freezer but there’s still not a soul in sight. He sighs, and then opens the break room door.

“Surprise!” A group of voices calls our and Gray jerks back slightly, away from the noise. Once he calms down he takes in the array of so many people in such a small place. It’s everyone that works at the coffee shop, and then some. Laxus is there, with Freed and Bix and Ever and Gramps. Lucy and Natsu are holding up a welcome home sign. Levy is standing next to Lucy, and Gajeel is standing next to her. Rogue and Sting and Lisana and Mira and Elfman and Erza are there too. Wendy and Romeo are standing in front of Macao and Wakaba, their shoulders pressed together as they grin at him. Lyon and Juvia are there as well, holding hands and blushing. Everyone he knows and loves, gathered in one small room just to welcome him back to work.

“You pathetic saps,” Gray laughs, but he can feel tears in his eyes. “I didnt die or anything, god. You’ve all seen me at least three times a week since Ive been gone,” He wipes at the tears in his eyes, and Natsu and Lucy let the banner drop while they run to him. He opens his arms and both of them jump at him, attacking him in a group hug.

“Alright, alright,” He laughs and kisses both of them on the head. It only takes a few seconds for the rest of the employees to join in, Freed dragging Laxus behind him while Sting and Rogue do the same with Gajeel.

“Welcome home to Fairy Tail!” They all cry in unison and Gray laughs with tears in his eyes.

“I missed you guys too,” He whispers, letting himself settle into the warmth of his family.

**  
**

The whole day is a party rearranged around the customers. Most of their time is spent in the back, laughing and joking and fighting. Erza made a cake, and after they dig in, everyone but Lucy and Natsu leaves.

“Glad you’re not dead,” Gajeel grumbles as he leaves, Sting and Rogue goofing off in front of him, holding hands and pushing each other.

“Missed you too, Gajeel,” Gray grins as him and Gajeel throws a punch at him, missing on purpose.

“Leave him alone!” Makarov huffs as he shoves at Gajeel’s legs, pushing him out the door.

“You’re not as weak as I thought you were, kiddo,” Laxus ruffles his hair as he leaves, and Gray scowls at him.

“He was worried,” Freed stage whispers to him.

“I was not!” Laxus denies, but his face is tinged pink.

“He was,” Bix and Ever chime in, and Laxus wrestles them out the door. Wendy and Mira and Lisana all hug him as they leave, and the others settle for a pat on the back and well wishes. Soon it’s just Lucy, Gray, and Natsu, gathered behind the counter in a silent store.

“I’m really glad you’re okay, Gray,” Lucy finally speaks up, breaking the silence that had settled over them.

“Can’t get rid of me that easily,” Gray wraps his arm around her neck and drags her against his body, then does the same thing with Natsu.

“Love you,” Lucy whispers, resting her hand on his chest.

“Love you too,” Gray kisses the top of her head, then does the same with Natsu. “Love you both,” He feels Natsu tense underneath his arm, then practically melt into him.

“Love you too,” He says, quietly, right against Gray’s shoulder, and warmth shoots through his body and settles directly into his heart. This, right here, this is what makes him happy. This is his family. This is his home.

**  
**

“Did you mean it?” Natsu asks later that night. Gray opted to go home with him, instead of spending another lonely night by himself. He’s curled up under Natsu’s covers, Happy sleeping on the pillow and pressed against his head. Natsu closes the door quietly behind him and climbs in to bed, laying down on his side so they’re looking directly at each other. Gray squirms around until he’s comfortable, careful not to dislodge Happy, who meows sleepily.

“Yeah,” Gray reaches out and grabs Natsu’s hand, lacing their fingers together and letting them rest in between each other on the bed. “I love you,” He says it firmly, sincerely, so Natsu know that he means it.

“I love you too,” Natsu uses their linked hands to pull Gray across the bed, closer to him, and kiss his forehead. “And I’m sorry, Gray. I’m so sorry. I never wanted you to get hurt,” He whispers against Gray’s forehead, and he sighs and pulls back so he can press their lips together. He kisses Natsu slow and languidly, breathing in and out against his cheek, lazily sliding his tongue across Natsu’s and dragging their lips together. He pulls back after a few minutes, his breathing slightly off and his body thrumming with a low hum of arousal.

“That’s enough apologizing. It doesn’t suit you,” He chastises, and Natsu huffs out a laugh and reclaims his lips. It’s easy to let Natsu slide on top of him, and he ignores Happy’s hiss as he bounds away. They kiss for a while, Natsu sat on top of his thighs and his hands placed next to Gray’s head, holding him up.

“I love you,” Natsu pulls away and kisses down Gray’s neck, darting his tongue out at random times to lick across his skin. He traces his tongue against the pink cut on Gray’s skin, the shallowest one from his time in the basement. He doesn’t say anything after that, just traces paths down Gray’s skin, using the scars as his guide. Gray’s breathing is shaky, and his fingers are trembling when they lace into Natsu’s hair.

“Didn’t say I was done kissing you, did I?” He uses his hold on Natsu’s hair to drag him back up, and traces one hand from the back of Natsu’s neck to circle around the front of it, his fingers digging slightly into the sides and cutting off Natsu’s breathing.

“Thought we could take this nice and slow?” Natsu growls out, but he’s grinning with Gray’s hand around his throat and Gray finds the image more attractive than he wants to admit.

“Not our style, is it?” Gray replies, and Natsu nods his head as much as he can. Gray tightens his hold and Natsu chokes slightly, his grin growing.

“Harder,” He gasps out, and Gray indulges him for a few seconds. He’s not trying to hurt Natsu, so he pulls his hand away and lets it rest loosely against Natsu’s skin. Natsu dives in for a kiss but it only lasts a few seconds before he’s pulling away again, to kiss down Gray’s chest once more.

“Just let me take care of you, yeah?” He lifts his head up to look at Gray and he nods. The room falls to silence as Natsu moves his way down Gray’s body, kissing and licking and biting and marking. He tugs down Gray’s underwear with ease, Gray lifting his hips slightly so that it’s easier.

“You don’t have to,” Gray says uncertainly but Natsu shuts him up by wrapping his lips around Gray’s cock and taking him down in one bob of his head. Gray gasps and tangles his hands in Natsu’s hair, his back arching slightly off the bed. Natsu moves slowly, his breath panting warm against Gray’s skin through his nose. Gray lets him move how he wants, tugging on his hair and moaning out his name. His wrist twinges a bit if he twists it the wrong way but he doesn’t pay attention to that, just lets himself fall into the pleasure of Natsu’s warm mouth around his cock. He looks down and almost regrets it. Natsu is staring up at him, a fire in his eyes. He has spit drooling down his skin and his lips are red, moving up and down his spit slicked cock. He looks like heaven and hell wrapped up in one, fucked out but still beautiful, and the sight is almost too much for Gray to handle.

“Fuck, Natsu,” He groans out. He tightens his grip on Natsu’s hair and uses it to hold him in place, then lifts his hips and fucks harshly into Natsu’s mouth. Natsu lets him, his grip tightening on Gray’s hipbones. He chokes and gags a bit, and Gray moans loudly when his cock hits the back of Natsu’s throat.

“Shit, how are you real?” Gray swears, tugging Natsu’s hair hard enough to make the boy moan, which sends vibrations down Gray’s cock. Warmth is pooling in this stomach, shooting through his body and setting him ablaze.

“Not gonna last much longer,” He warns with panting breaths. Natsu takes over for him, digging his nails into Gray’s skin and moving his head up and down, faster and faster, and Gray arches off the bed when he comes, shoving Natsu’s head down and his hips up. Natsu takes it with a whine, and Gray relaxes enough to let his head go. He settles back down against the bed, his heart roaring in his ears and his breath coming in heavy pants. Natsu looks like a mess, cum and drool sliding down his chin, his cheeks pink and his hair fluffy and disarrayed. Gray drags him up and kisses him hard, ignoring the taste of himself on Natsu’s tongue, and flips them over. He shoves his hand down Natsu’s pants and makes quick work of getting him off, unwilling to stop kissing him. Natsu pants and whines into his mouth, writhing against the bed as Gray jacks him off the way he knows Natsu likes.

“Such a good fucking boy for me,” Gray praises against his lips and that’s all it takes for Natsu to come, his fingers digging into Gray’s back. Gray falls to the side of him and pulls his hand out, then wipes it off on Natsu’s underwear.

“Gross,” Natsu wrinkles his nose, but his voice is breathless and shaky.

“Love you,” Gray turns his head to kiss Natsu’s forehead, and Natsu turns to curl into him.

“Love you too.”

**  
**

Natsu gets a job at the coffee shop. It’s only natural. He’s spent enough time there, and he needs a job to fill his probation agreement. After begging and pleading with Gramps, who Gray knows would have given him a job no matter what because he loves Natsu, he finally gets to work with his boyfriend and his sister.

“I’ve never had a real job before,” Natsu sounds a bit in awe, pressing some random buttons on one of the machines, which makes creamer spurt out all over the counter. Gray rolls his eyes and grabs a clean rag, wringing it out before tossing it to Natsu. He catches it easily and begins wiping up the cream, smiling sheepishly at Gray.

“Let’s refrain from pushing buttons, huh?” Gray claps him on the shoulder and Natsu nods, dropping the rag when all the creamer is cleaned up.

“It’s always this slow?” Natsu leans back against the counter, fiddling with the ends of his scarf. It’s not technically allowed in the uniform, but convincing Gramps wasn’t hard. It’s clean again, no more dirt and not even a trace of blood, and Gray does kind of wonder how he does that. No matter how dirty it gets, he always seems to be able to make it as spotless as usual. Just proves how much it means to him.

“Knock on wood,” Gray kicks his ankle gently. “But, yeah. You practically live here, you know how it is,” He points out, and Natsu sighs.

“Yeah, I know. I just didn’t think it would be so boring,” He reaches out and grabs Gray’s shirt, pulling him in easily. “At least you can entertain me,” He smirks, and Gray rolls his eyes but wraps his arms around Natsu’s waist anyways.

“No PDA on the clock,” Laxus barks out, poking his head out from around the corner. “You know the rules. Disgusting.”

“I know for a fact that you and Freed have been caught making out in the freezer a total of three times before. So shut your trap,” Gray grabs a cup and turns around, throwing it at Laxus, who catches it easily and turns bright pink.

“Shut your trap, Fullbuster,” He crushes the cup in his hand but disappears into the back again.

“How does Freed put up with a guy like him?” Natsu scoffs. He puts on a big act, but Gray knows for a fact that Natsu considers Laxus a part of their family as much as he does everyone else. He looks up to Laxus.

“They balance each other out,” Gray shrugs. “Freed keeps him mellow and Laxus keep him confident, makes sure that Freed knows he doesn’t have to take any shit from anyone. They love each other,” He rests his head on Natsu’s shoulder, closing his eyes and burying a yawn in Natsu’s neck.

“Tired?” Natsu asks, running his fingers calmingly through Gray’s hair.

“Someone kept me up all night,” Gray huffs, digging his nails into Natsu’s back through his shirt.

“Man, I know. Happy’s so loud, isn’t he?” Natsu teases, and Gray bites his neck warningly. Natsu gasps and grabs Gray’s hair, bringing him up to his full height, then tilts his head down and kisses him, warm and inviting. Gray melts into it, settling against Natsu and pushing him further against the counter.

“Perverts!” Gray feels something hit the back of his head, and he swats his hand in that general direction. He manages to knock something else out of the path, but he turns around to see who’s throwing it. Lucy is standing there, another cup in her hand. She looks like she’s fighting back a smile.

“Aw c’mon, Luce,” Natsu slips out from Gray’s hold and wraps his arm around Lucy’s neck, headlocking her while he ruffles his hand through her hair and pulls it from her pigtails. “You know you wanna see some boy on boy love,” He chuckles. Lucy growls and screeches, trying to get out of Natsu’s hold with no success.

“Not from my brother! Stupid pervert, let go of me! God!” She slaps and claws at his arm and he finally lets go, ducking her punches and walking back up to Gray, laughing the whole time.

“Children! God, can you keep the racket down?!” Laxus finally emerges, standing with his hands on his hips.

“Shut up, you stupid exhibitionist!” Gray throws yet another coffee cup at him, and Laxus just knocks it away. They’re wasting a lot of cups.

“Says you, stripper!” Laxus growls.

“You wanna fight, dude?!” Gray threatens. There’s a flurry of motion and then he’s standing in front of Laxus, fists poised and ready for a fight.

“Gray! Your clothes!” Natsu and Lucy chime in at the same time, and when Gray looks down he notices he’s stripped himself of his shirt, which is in Natsu’s hands.

“When did that happen?!” He snatches his shirt back and tugs it on, ignoring the heat in his cheeks.

“Who raised you?!” Laxus smacks the back of his head, and Gray turns around to face him, but the bell diverts their attention.

“Welcome to Fairy Tail!” They all say at the same time, and the teenage girl that just entered smiles shyly at them, but lists her order off to Natsu despite her stammer. Truthfully, Gray can’t blame her. Natsu can really put the charms on someone when he tries to.

“I’ll kill you,” Laxus whispers harshly in his ear, and Gray jabs him roughly in the side.

“I’ll take you down with me, asshole,” Gray promises. They fake a fight as quietly as possible while Natsu talks to the customer and Lucy makes her coffee, hitting and pinching and throwing in the occasional punch. Lucy is the one to break them up, lecturing them about professionalism after the customer leaves. She can be just as scary as Erza when she gives it a try, and Gray feels pretty chastised by the time she’s done. Laxus probably does too, judging by the way he keeps his shoulders slumped even after Lucy flounces away.

“I won,” Laxus grumbles. Gray scoffs and slaps the back of his head.

**  
**

“Well that was interesting,” Natsu sighs as he falls into bed, his arms and legs spread so they fall over Gray. He groans and shoves Natsu away, into his own respective side of the bed.

“We’re a pretty violent bunch,” Gray concedes, letting Natsu curl his legs around Gray’s. Happy jumps up to lay between them and Gray scratches the top of his head. Happy butts his head up against his nails and breaks out into a loud purr, the sound enough to make Gray’s fingers vibrate. Loudest purr he’s ever heard.

“You guys are family, huh?” Natsu rests his hand on Gray’s hip, his thumb brushing back and forth across his scar. His hands are warm like always, and Gray feels like Natsu is burning his mark into his ice cold skin, each swipe over the scar a declaration that it won’t happen again, that Gray belongs to him just as much as he belongs to Natsu, that this scar is the proof of what they’ve been through together. That it’s not the end of the world, but a milestone, a bump in the road.

“Course,” Gray moves his hand from Happy’s head to rest on Natsu’s cheek, but Happy paws at his arm until he moves it back to his scratching location. “You’re family too, Natsu. You have been since the day you walked in there looking for Lucy, and you will be till the day you die,” It’s facts. No matter what happens, if they break up or if Fairy Tail closes down or if they all part ways, they’re family. They’re always going to be there for each other. Fairy Tail is more than a coffee shop, it’s a home, a safe place for all of them. Not everyone is lucky enough to have somewhere like that, especially not their place of employment. Gray has spent a lot of time wandering from place to place, desperately searching for somewhere to belong that was more than just Ultear and Lyon, and he’s found it in Fairy Tail. In Natsu. No matter what happens with them, if they last or not, Natsu will always be his home.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Natsu taps his finger against Gray’s hipbone. “You’re not getting rid for me that easily, Princess. You’re stuck with me, forever. I promise you that,” He dips his head down till their foreheads are touching, and Gray closes his eyes.

“I’ll hold you to that, flame brain. You’ve sealed your fate now,” Gray warns, his voice nothing but a whisper.

“Couldn’t dream of a better one, snowflake,” Natsu seals their promise with a kiss.

 

**Author's Note:**

> all the members of natsu’s gang are made up of grimoire heart and tartaros members bc i’m unoriginal! this is the longest most detailed most angst and violent filled piece i’ve ever written and also the first time i’ve written blowjob and handjob scenes so i would rlly rlly rlly appreciate feedback and criticism and comments in general!! thank you so much for reading guy ah i love


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